The second American Revolution has started, and it ain't pretty

The Republican Party has become a revolutionary party, one that tolerates no opposition.

Consider that if a Republican politician doesn't follow party doctrine then he or she is is sidelined as soon as possible.  Why do you think there are so many ex-Republicans?  See Jim Ramstad's praise of Wellstone, "Remembering Paul Wellstone", Star Tribune 2012-10-19.

Consider that Republicans keep insisting that their solutions will solve certain problems even when experts point out historic facts that show similar policies have not worked in the past.

Consider that Republicans' stated goal at the start of Obama's presidency was to ensure he did not have a second term.  Some commentators think this is barely concealed racism.  This may be true, but it is also an effective smokescreen.  Their true motive may be to destroy the Democratic Party and to become the only party.

Consider the Republican claims of voter fraud. Are not voter ID requirements a thinly disguised attempt to reduce the number of Democratic voters?

Consider that the Republicans may have already started a civil war.  As they give more power to corporations, are they transforming our government from "by the people" to "by the corporations"?  Once corporations were tools of the people to be dissolved when their purpose was fulfilled.  Now people seem to be the tools of corporations to be discarded when no longer economically useful.

See "The Great Unraveling" by Paul Krugman.  He saw this revolution in 2003!

Consider that the Republicans call themselves "conservatives" but they are nowhere near being classical conservatives as defined by Edmund Burke in the Eighteenth Century.  In fact, many of the so-called liberals in the Democratic Party may be closer to the Burkian model of Conservative than the Republicans.  For more details, see "Why Voters Should Turn From the Pseudoconservative Party of the Great Recession, Part I", Louis M. Guenin, Huffington Post, 2012-10-24.  It is quite an indictment of the hodgepodge of conflicting ideas of the Republican Party.  Watch for Part II in the Huffington Post tomorrow (2012-10-25).

An argument against a moderate third party, for now

E.J. Dionne wrote an interesting article on why the radical right must be defeated before we can think about having a successful moderate alternative party. See "Divided moderates will be conquered", Washington Post, 2011-11-27.

I dislike the terms "throwing your vote away" or "stealing votes from". It's not the supporters of third parties fault that others didn't join them. And third party candidates have won.

Unless there is someone or are somebodies who show exceptional leadership, it seems like Dionne's ideas are best for the long-term interests of the country. But the chances for exceptional leadership seem rather minuscule this "close" to the election. Maybe a new party will arise in time for the 2014 elections. A core might be the RINOs, the Republicans In Name Only, those believe in the Republican Party of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, and Eisenhower and not in the Republican Party of Reagan, Nixon, and the Bushes.