I think that a Liberal vs Conservative two party system is inevitable in any large group. This assumes that most humans fall into broad liberal (counts on government, believes in helping the poor, open to new ideas) or conservative (dislikes taxes, believes in personal responsibility, likes free markets and the past) modes of thinking.
Sooner or later, the smaller groups on one side are going to realize that they can push elements of their agenda further if they all vote together. They might not get all of the things that they wanted, but they'll gain more leverage over the people who have a drastically different world view. Once this has happened, all of the people of the other mode of thinking will realize that they now have to band together in order to compete. And wallah, parties are formed.
The problem this presents to american voters is that a vote for a third party is effectively a vote for the other side of the ideological divide. Every vote cast for Garry Johnson is directly aiding the cause of Barack Obama. I bet Al Gore hates Ralph Nader to this day. The idea of "what will happen if the other side wins?" is a very real motivating factor in the voting booth.
I'm not defending the two party system. I'm saying that like free markets, it's an emergent property of human behavior. Working together with common cause is the best way to get something done, even if it means associating yourself with a group of people that you don't entirely agree with.
Sooner or later, the smaller groups on one side are going to realize that they can push elements of their agenda further if they all vote together. They might not get all of the things that they wanted, but they'll gain more leverage over the people who have a drastically different world view. Once this has happened, all of the people of the other mode of thinking will realize that they now have to band together in order to compete. And wallah, parties are formed.
The problem this presents to american voters is that a vote for a third party is effectively a vote for the other side of the ideological divide. Every vote cast for Garry Johnson is directly aiding the cause of Barack Obama. I bet Al Gore hates Ralph Nader to this day. The idea of "what will happen if the other side wins?" is a very real motivating factor in the voting booth.
I'm not defending the two party system. I'm saying that like free markets, it's an emergent property of human behavior. Working together with common cause is the best way to get something done, even if it means associating yourself with a group of people that you don't entirely agree with.