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Philip Kraske
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Take Israel and Palestine. It would be the work of a moment for the United States to declare that it will not use its UN veto power in Israel's favor until a Palestinian state is a living reality. But you will hunt in vain for an American candidate willing to take on Israel.

One of the healthier aspects of European democracy is that small fringe parties exist to make these points, and every parliament in Europe has its seats with vocal extremists. It's true that these parties are never elected to run the country -- they occasionally play king maker or attain a ministry -- but they play the vital role of offering a wider variety of answers to public problems than you would ever find in America.

A wider political spectrum has the added benefit of giving democratic outlet to those fed up with the major parties. And it makes European politics less -- slightly, crucially less -- subject to big money and corporate influence. If you doubt that last point, just look at France's answer to fracking: a flat nationwide ban, and that despite an all-out lawsuit by its own national oil giant, Total.

But the U.S.? America's democracy will not recover until it throws off the dual oxen yoke of the Democrats and Republicans. As that modern sage Chris Hedges wrote : "I f we do not rapidly build militant mass movements to overthrow corporate tyranny, including breaking the back of the two-party duopoly that is the mask of corporate power, we will lose our liberty."

When a candidate begins to ask if we can't cut back the surveillance state or eliminate most of our bases abroad or make a principle of not overthrowing foreign democracies, you'll know something has changed. But how far from that day we are!

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For a recording of this poem, go to my website: http://www.philipkraske.com/kraske-fiction/

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