[Bruce Campbells Chin]

These political parties who hold the primaries are private entities ~ they are not the government.

Nobody is claiming that the parties don't have the right to set their own rules as private entities. The debate is over what those rules should be.

If you look carefully at your ballot next time you'll see "vote for a delegate for" so and so. Mine always have. Maybe some states are different.

Sure, but who are these delegates, who chose them to be the the ones who go, and what are their beliefs/stances on the issues? If that isn't disclosed (and it isn't), then you're essentially forced to cast a vote in complete ignorance of the person to whom you are giving your proxy. That's a stupid rule, and it should be changed.

[muawiyah]

The deal is the political parties make a claim that they'll represent your interests and intentions. They then do various things including identifying the delegates who will vote at a convention.

Been going on a long time. If you don't like the way the delegates vote, then vote for a different party.

Or, like I suggested, emigrate to Denmark or Israel ~ they really do do it differently than we do with a whole 'nuther set of assumptions. They still have representative democracies ~ they just get there in incomprehensible ways. But, like I said, it'll be different.