Yes, but... We live in the world of our electoral system. In a Parliamentary system, where the party that wins 20% of the vote gets 20% of the representation, a third party can be a significant force. In our system, the party that wins 20% of the vote gets 0% of the representation. Unless there's a major shake-up (Civil War?), the electo…
Yes, but... We live in the world of our electoral system. In a Parliamentary system, where the party that wins 20% of the vote gets 20% of the representation, a third party can be a significant force. In our system, the party that wins 20% of the vote gets 0% of the representation. Unless there's a major shake-up (Civil War?), the electorate will devolve into only two viable parties. It's a math question, not a policy question. To produce an impact, you must work WITHIN one of the two parties. Otherwise you're just wasting your time.
This is why many leftists believe reform is not plausible, and only revolution can lead to a significant change. The extreme consolidation of wealth and power means that it will never be possible to create significant momentum working within the system - it will always be undercut, or outright erased. Unfortunately, it seems we are relegated to waiting for things to get so bad they break; in the meantime, building grassroots momentum outside of the political parties can still have significant value, once revolution inevitably beckons.
Yes, but... We live in the world of our electoral system. In a Parliamentary system, where the party that wins 20% of the vote gets 20% of the representation, a third party can be a significant force. In our system, the party that wins 20% of the vote gets 0% of the representation. Unless there's a major shake-up (Civil War?), the electorate will devolve into only two viable parties. It's a math question, not a policy question. To produce an impact, you must work WITHIN one of the two parties. Otherwise you're just wasting your time.
This is why many leftists believe reform is not plausible, and only revolution can lead to a significant change. The extreme consolidation of wealth and power means that it will never be possible to create significant momentum working within the system - it will always be undercut, or outright erased. Unfortunately, it seems we are relegated to waiting for things to get so bad they break; in the meantime, building grassroots momentum outside of the political parties can still have significant value, once revolution inevitably beckons.