By Alberto Pupo

The same old song plays on every election year. When we reach the voting booth, it is a reassuring voice which guides us in our choice of candidate. The lesser of two evils syndrome. Every election year no matter where are heads may be or hearts may be telling us we have to critically assess the slate of characters and vote which that which will bring less pain and devastation to the Nation. More often than not we are warned not to vote with what is right but what will not destroy the fabric of American life. How does this syndrome occur? What is the reason that we are one of the few ostensibly Democratic Nations that cannot field candidates which accurately represent our visions. The problem is quite simple, it is because of two factors that have created this condition. The first factor is the movement of Conservatives in this Country to the ultimate end of the Right , and fully embracing Fascism. Meanwhile the opposition party has decided to stand pat and not counterbalance with a logical move to the left.

The United States has never been known to be a radical Nation. Usually what is considered fringe elements were at one point usually mocked and laughed away as trite. Conservatism while having strains of authoritarian paternalistic control, never made an effort to fully embrace its ultimate end. While we had the marginalization of women and minorities done quietly and more covert matters. The Right has been embracing full blown warfare. The new Fascism call for the complete subjugation of women to surrender all reproductive rights, to become subservient to their husband in the most biblical of manners. Minorities are an invented people to the new Fascist Right only a White Man is entitled protection from the Constitution. Naturally with this wild lurch to the Right. Conservatism has unmasked itself as Hitler’s wild wet dream. The Right in this country has fully embraced the ultimate conservative mode. Naturally since American politics is based on a two party system, like with any given competition between two combatants there is a solid opposition? With this new strengthening of the theocratic right champions on the Left have emerged? Every Actions has an equal but Opposite Reaction? Well in a world which follows Newtonian logic it would mean an Opposition Party would rise well see the thing is….

The Left in America does not truly exist in a formalized party structure. The Party known as Democrats the opposition party did not feel the need to move to the left to counterbalance the great Republican shift. The opposition instead feels that reaching for some mythical center will it endear it to voters and make the party seem “ responsible”. They have tried to sell us a nice myth about bipartisanship which means nothing more than a collective capitulation to the demands of a Right Wing gone insane. The reactions of the Democrats to not counterbalance the lurch rightward is akin to a football team refusing to play a game on grounds that opposing the other team would seem offensive to the spectators. This is how we have now created the ideal conditions for the lesser of two evils syndrome. The “centrist democrats” seem like a sensible solution to the ultra fascism of the right, however keep in mind that in not being an opposition these sensible solutions will not fight hard for those who truly need it. They will throw a tepid list of demands as long as they are non controversial and try to maintain a bizarre status quo, that is not truly a status quo because the Right will keep pushing further to to the right. The Democrats are not living up to the end of the bargain to keep the ying and yang of a two party system they have to move completely to the left.

What is the solution then to this conundrum? Well there are two things that can happen. The first one is that the Democrats as a party find their missing spines and decide to counterbalance fascism with a nice healthy robust opposition. This way the ying and yang balance of American politics can continue on its merry way. The second and more radical option is that in a grand refusal of the Democrats to move to oppose, that a new party shall rise and become a true opposition to Fascism. This solution takes a lot more time, organization, and dedication as well as an overhaul of the entire electoral system which has been designed to accommodate only two players at a time. American politics must create a different atmosphere in order to create a European esque experiment of multiple parties. Ultimately with pluralistic society that option is the most desirable alas in a paradoxical manner also one that will not happen any time soon. For the mean time the only thing we can strive for is to make the Democrats and opposition party, but .. will they find their spines in time? Or are we doomed to continue voting for a lesser of two evils?