Ahira's Hangar

No, don't worry, this isn't a populist demagogue rant about how politicians are corrupt and out of touch and don't represent me, the little guy.

I'm just curious if anybody feels that there is a political party that represents their views on all, or even a majority of the issues.

I try to judge each issue separately, eschewing ideology for a more pragmatic approach, but frankly, being an "Independent" doesn't leave you much of a political voice. On the other hand, I'm a poor fit for any of the party platforms I've encountered, including the so called "third" parties.

Part of me wishes we could just vote directly on the issues, but of course, in practice that would lead to highly unstable government, and it seems that often leadership is at least as important as actual policies.

You can support issue advocacy groups, like the Sierra Club (I'm pretty pro-enviroment), but I think that often their narrow focus doesn't lend itself well to integrating conflicting concerns (economic for example) the way a party platform has to at least attempt to.

Utilizing the web, you could find like minded individuals to form a new party with, I guess, but it would necessarily be too weak to compete, until you started forming coalitions and compromising on issues.

You can endlessly debate the relative merits between the American "two party" system and the European style multi-party coalitional system; there seem to be trade-offs either way - representation vs. stability, and both claim to be more efficient. To me it seems largely an issue of whether you want do your coalitional maneuvering before or after the election, and realistically, in most countries there's only three or four parties with any power. Not much of an improvement.

Finally, there is only one solution left that makes any sense. Oh, all right! I'll do it! I accept your demands that I become the All-Powerfull Benevolent Dictator.

Sorry, don't really know where I was going with all this, I'm just very frustrated with the current system. Anybody else? <i>Edited by: AlphSeeker at: 10/29/03 11:55 am
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I'm frustrated too...While I sympathize to some degree with the Green Party...it appears that American politics, and American media is now totally owned by Big Business and the Christian right.. and there's not much we can do about it. When 64% of the American populus is accepting the Bush administrations plethora of bold faced lies without question it marks an extremely scary and sad period in US history. *****
Before, you are wise; after, you are wise. In between you are otherwise.
Fravashi saying (from the formularies of Osho the Fool) <i></i>

Alph, I can't say that any party particularly represents my views. I have been an independent voter since age 18...and all too often, it seems to be a choice of lesser evil rather than a choice of greater good... Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
****Tavern Wench of DOGMA, the Defenders of George Martin's Art****<i></i>

Politicians that do not represent me! Well, over my adult life I've become very used to that. Since I started voting in 1972 I have voted for the winner of the presidency twice. So feeling non-represented is nothing new to me.

Do the political parties represent my all views, well no? One party does not represent any of my views, and the other party represents many of my views but not all.

All I really have to say about this right now. TTFN taraswizard
Allan Rosewarne N9SQT/WDX6HQV
Chicago area
W/T forever, always
Plan C - http://planc.bravepages.com/main.html<i></i>

Heh, yeah... lots of parties represent me, and that's the problem. Libertarian, Green, Reform, Democrat... heck, occasionally even Republican. ________________
I wanna feel the metamorphosis and cleansing I've endured within my shadow. Change is coming. Now is my time. Listen to my muscle memory. Contemplate what I've been clinging to. -Tool, "Forty-Six & Two" <i></i>

My problem, precisely, Sylvanus.

I often wonder if there's enough consensus on those particular points of representation to form a new non-ideological party (or two) that could contend seriously. I sure would like to see the GOP and Dems get shaken up a bit. <i>Edited by: AlphSeeker at: 11/13/03 9:03 pm
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