You can placate yourself with labels like “democrat” and “republican” all you like, but other than the fact that they’re rich and you’re not, there is no real difference here:
First of all, the two "parties" are not really parties at all. They have no members. It is true. Real parties have dues paying members who belong to local organizations who elect delegates to higher organizations up to a national convention. For example the Labour Party of the UK has about 195,000 members; the Christian Democratic and the Social Democratic Parties of Germany each have about a half a million members. Parties are democratic organizations run by their members.
So are there differences between the "parties". Yes and no.
The Republican and Democratic "Parties" are top down organizations which have the exclusive purpose of perpetrating the rule of the capitalist class in general and the finance capitalist class in particular. But why two? Because the Republican "Party" is the primary organization to advance the program of big capital; always seeking any possible opening to squeeze the people in general and the working class in particular. Such a program creates resistance and counter organizations among the people, which needs to be controlled. This is why the Democratic "Party" exists. It is a safety valve on the system. When any section of the people is in a state of rebellion, whether it be minorities, women, environmentalists, or the entire working class, the Democrats step in to co-opt any serious movements to make sure they don't fundamentally threaten the system. This creates the illusion that the the Democrats respond to the grievances of the people. But it is only an illusion, because behind the scenes, the Ds and the Rs are collaborating in the interests of Big Capital. The Ds explain this as being a big tent for all. But as a people's movement becomes weaker because of the machinations of the Ds, the Ds are able to pull back to a more conservative position; allowing the Rs to move further to the right. The fate of the US labor movement is the most important example. Look what's happened to Black politics. Obama hides from Black people. Worse than Clinton. Notice that when the Occupy movement was going strong, the D's were making anti-Wall Street noises. No more. In fact, Obama has promised Big Capital that he won't be trashing Wall St. in this campaign.
People are and always have been talking about "reforming" or taking over the Democratic "Party" and turning into a true people's party. This CANNOT happen. Not even on a theoretical basis. Reform minded people cannot join an organization which has no members.
The historical landscape is littered with the bleached bones of those who have tried, from the 30s up until the present, to somehow try to "reform" the Democratic "Party" It cannot happen.
First of all, the two "parties" are not really parties at all. They have no members. It is true. Real parties have dues paying members who belong to local organizations who elect delegates to higher organizations up to a national convention. For example the Labour Party of the UK has about 195,000 members; the Christian Democratic and the Social Democratic Parties of Germany each have about a half a million members. Parties are democratic organizations run by their members. So are there differences between the "parties". Yes and no. The Republican and Democratic "Parties" are top down organizations which have the exclusive purpose of perpetrating the rule of the capitalist class in general and the finance capitalist class in particular. But why two? Because the Republican "Party" is the primary organization to advance the program of big capital; always seeking any possible opening to squeeze the people in general and the working class in particular. Such a program creates resistance and counter organizations among the people, which needs to be controlled. This is why the Democratic "Party" exists. It is a safety valve on the system. When any section of the people is in a state of rebellion, whether it be minorities, women, environmentalists, or the entire working class, the Democrats step in to co-opt any serious movements to make sure they don't fundamentally threaten the system. This creates the illusion that the the Democrats respond to the grievances of the people. But it is only an illusion, because behind the scenes, the Ds and the Rs are collaborating in the interests of Big Capital. The Ds explain this as being a big tent for all. But as a people's movement becomes weaker because of the machinations of the Ds, the Ds are able to pull back to a more conservative position; allowing the Rs to move further to the right. The fate of the US labor movement is the most important example. Look what's happened to Black politics. Obama hides from Black people. Worse than Clinton. Notice that when the Occupy movement was going strong, the D's were making anti-Wall Street noises. No more. In fact, Obama has promised Big Capital that he won't be trashing Wall St. in this campaign. People are and always have been talking about "reforming" or taking over the Democratic "Party" and turning into a true people's party. This CANNOT happen. Not even on a theoretical basis. Reform minded people cannot join an organization which has no members. The historical landscape is littered with the bleached bones of those who have tried, from the 30s up until the present, to somehow try to "reform" the Democratic "Party" It cannot happen.