First and foremost, we must recognize the fact that the two party system in the United States is a fabrication. The two parties, Republican and Democrat, have made themselves the dominant two parties, though Federalist and other types of parties used to exist.

Also, it could be argued that the two parties are really one larger party that has schisms to its approach, and hence has set clear divisions to see who's on what side of the fence.

After all, Lincoln was a Republican, but his act of ending slavery in a modern context would be construed as a Democratic act. Also the philosophies of Lincoln era Democrats were pretty much the same as modern day Republicans.

It is inevitable that in country that is dominated by extremism, Race politics, prescription drug epidemics, obesity epidemics, huge SUV, a this versus that mentality of politics would dominate.

Every idea has to be polarized, it is either us or them, you or me, never any other elements to be considered.

This type of mentality governs the way our politics is run, and how the general public views things.

In reality, nothing exits in black and white terms, but in varying shades of gray.

However, if you run on another party ticket, people believe you will not win, so they vote either Democrat or Republican.

They do this because, strangely enough, they want to go with a winner, and either democrat or republican is a sure bet.

However, the same mentality that fuels this behavior is what perpetuates it.

If people simply thought, I am sick of a two party system in the world's most free, most democratic nation, other options to the two party system would form.

Not only is it limiting to US politics to have a DE facto two party system, but it perpetuates the same kinds of outdated, ignorant ideas that have immobilized many of the other voices in the country and left many other voices silenced, creating a very narrow-minded view of what Americans are like and in particular what American politicians and politics are about.

The two party system has failed us as the people, and failed US as a nation.

We must allow others voices to come forth, even if they mix and match the best of the two parties and some other ideas to become the third and or fourth party.

Learn more about this author, Thaxton Lewis.
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