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[novapsyche]

The two-party system isn't perfect. God knows it's not perfect. But it's what we've got. We've had it for a long time.

Tonight, I'm thinking of American politics as a more or less continuous line of twin parties (with the few exceptions here and there, a braid). Has there always been two Americas? The parties evolve as the times do. They must, because we do.

The Democratic and Republican parties are shells. The American populace is outgrowing them. We'll soon break through these shells. We'll probably still have a twin system, but the parties might reflect their constituents a bit more accurately.

No one overthrew the Whigs.

Comments

[thoth.livejournal.com]

A friend of mine describes it as the ice cream man principle of game theory.

Imagine a long beach. . essentially 1-dimensional, and you are there competing with another ice cream salesman. People will go to the closest one. Where should you setup? If you setup anywhere but right in the middle, the other one can ace you out by setting up right next to you, and getting the larger remainder.

This is what happens with Pepsi and Cokie, with political parties, and any other system where two entities share a heterogeneous population along a single axis.

People demand that their party move closer to the 'ideological base' by moving right or left. The problem is, if you do that the other party will just cozy up and grab everyone you left behind. And Nader's right. . they have to be as close to each other as possible.

[padpedpladuk.livejournal.com]

Hey have you seen this by David Leip?

He has the entire history of electoral college votes in maps! Recent ones even down to the level of counties or congressional districts.