This post is a response to a question posed in its complete format: “Why do a lot of Americans think politics is a dichotomy that consists exclusively of democrats and republicans who are fully aligned with the platforms of either party?”

It might have something to do with almost every elected representative being a member of or closely affiliated with one or the other party.

It might have something to do with the notion that votes cast for alternatives are generally wasted protest votes that accomplish little more than a token form of expression that, at best, is viewed as a spoiler between the two major parties.

It might have something to do with the harsh reality that electoral reform will be necessary to change the current power dynamic. It might also have something to do with how much the oligarchic powers like it the way it is because it works in their favour to reduce their costs of buying government representatives and their risk of losing their investments.

It might also have something to do with a population that can easily be characterized as so much the walking wounded that they’ve developed Stockholm Syndrome because the alternative in changing the dynamic will demand a severe degree of chaos. At the same time, everyone hopes some magical solution will present itself to help them avoid risking everything while getting their hands dirty.

Finally, it might have something to do with the American people not being quite at their breaking point and have shown incredible resilience as they’ve learned to live in a dystopic environment under a perpetual threat of losing everything, including their children to gun-toting lunatics using their schools to vent their childhood rage. Since they’re okay with giving up their lives to enrich billionaires, it seems they’ve given up on being the home of the brave and the land of the free.