but other than the pieces of paper with Party Platform written on top, campaign slogans and generic labels such as "conservative" vs. "liberal", I seriously ask, IS there really any significant difference in practice, between the two parties? While I've never lived in the USA as an adult, the view from afar is such that as far as actual governing is concerned, I can't really tell which party is "in power" or who backed which lousy President. Aside from the fact that each party has it's "traditional demographic" of voters, I don't see much difference between them [Bush has actually greatly increased the polarization between the two], to the extent that the cynic in me thinks you folks mostly have a [two-headed] one-party system (with all that this implies) that have things set up between them, to prevent any real threat from any other opinion/party - As long as this status-quo prevails it doesn't really matter what the party agenda is. All they ever use are buzz-words any way.
I have never actually voted in the USA. Because of the way the bizarre electoral system is set-up, I don't really have to. My absentee ballot would be polled in a strong Blue state (Massachusetts), and my inclination so far (surprising as this may seem), has been to vote for Democrat Presidential candidates. I once checked - the last time my voting district was voted red was about 130 years ago.
The one time that I actually bothered applying to vote, was back in 1992 or 1996 when Ross Perot ran for office (this would have been my first or second eligible election). But at the time, I didn't understand how futile this would have been - If you are NOT from a "swing state" then your vote really doesn't matter, whether you vote for or against your state "color", let alone some additional candidate.
The greatest difficulty that foreigners have with understanding the USA political set-up, is that despite external appearances where the USA appears to be one country, internally it is, to a large extent, fifty independent ones, with a lot more political maneuvering and in-fighting than an outsider would believe possible. It took me a good long time to internalize this, that in fact, the states even have [moderately] different forms of government, each with it's own set of laws and "constitution", and that indeed these minor differences are a source of "state pride". Us foreigners tend to think the USA is much more monolithic. You guys are weird. ;-)
I'll close with a wonderful quote from Ross Perot, that is so much more true today than when said in 1992, Washington D.C, he said,
"has become a town filled with sound bites, shell games, handlers, media stuntmen who posture, create images, talk, shoot off Roman candles, but don't ever accomplish anything. We need deeds, not words, in this city."
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timeasmymeasure
Excuse me
Date: 2005-11-21 12:58 pm (UTC)I have never actually voted in the USA. Because of the way the bizarre electoral system is set-up, I don't really have to. My absentee ballot would be polled in a strong Blue state (Massachusetts), and my inclination so far (surprising as this may seem), has been to vote for Democrat Presidential candidates. I once checked - the last time my voting district was voted red was about 130 years ago.
The one time that I actually bothered applying to vote, was back in 1992 or 1996 when Ross Perot ran for office (this would have been my first or second eligible election). But at the time, I didn't understand how futile this would have been - If you are NOT from a "swing state" then your vote really doesn't matter, whether you vote for or against your state "color", let alone some additional candidate.
The greatest difficulty that foreigners have with understanding the USA political set-up, is that despite external appearances where the USA appears to be one country, internally it is, to a large extent, fifty independent ones, with a lot more political maneuvering and in-fighting than an outsider would believe possible. It took me a good long time to internalize this, that in fact, the states even have [moderately] different forms of government, each with it's own set of laws and "constitution", and that indeed these minor differences are a source of "state pride". Us foreigners tend to think the USA is much more monolithic. You guys are weird. ;-)
I'll close with a wonderful quote from Ross Perot, that is so much more true today than when said in 1992, Washington D.C, he said,