No, you can (in part) thank your own much vaunted fear of third parties for socialized healthcare, as your association of third parties with the healthcare debacle is, IMHO, entirely detached from the realities on the ground. Rather, it is the skillful manipulation of a carefully controlled two-party system that has brought us two our present dilemma.
First, in Illinois the only third parties with ballot access are liberal ones, so the electoral effect of the little thirds nets out to a conservative benefit here. But the established parties here have built a self-protective barrier that makes it nearly impossible for a contrary voice to be raised.
Second, third parties are totally consistent with free market principles. Competition is beneficial, not harmful, even to the political process. Lack of competition creates insularity from the “customer.” This produces the “political class” syndrome, us versus them, rather than us running our own government.
Third, in some states, like Illinois, the commonality of interest between the two parties is so strong we now have our Republican candidates publically kissing the, er, feet, of liberal democrats. One well-known Republican here recently praised Democrat Lisa Madigan as better than his own Republican candidate for AG, despite the fact that she is a rabid feminist, pro-abortion, ACORN entangled uber-liberal. His rational was that she was “doing such a good job.” Well, her daddy, Mike Madigan, runs the state, is the de facto governor. So if you don’t kiss up to him you won’t get anywhere, even if you’re Republican. Connect the dots.
Fourth, sometimes third parties can change the game completely, and win. Abe Lincoln was third party, back when being Republican was a third party gig, because the only show in town was the dems versus the whigs. So it can be done.
So please don’t generalize that third parties are a bad idea. That’s two-party propaganda and it’s not surprising it reinforces the established two-party means of failure that has brought us to this point. Sarah Palin, perhaps inadvertently, said it best. The two-party system is pathologically corrupt because they run like a business. As long as everybody gets enough market share to keep their personal revenue streams in tact, they’ll keep doing what they have done for too long, promise us anything then blindly follow the party executives wherever the money leads them, just like any good business operation.
You go there if you like. I’ve been a pub my whole life, but it’s over between me and them. No more buying the line. No more false hopes of revitalization that will only delay an effective response to the current crisis. It’s time to walk away and start over.
I LOVE lefty “third parties”. The more the better.