We’re doing things a little differently for this edition of Unfiltered. We’ve peripherally followed comedian Bridget Phetasy’s banter on Twitter over the past few years, but we’ve tuned in more acutely after seeing some of her unconventional tweets that are thought-provoking and infrequently discussed. As a disclaimer, this piece is in no way meant to undermine the importance of the upcoming election. Being a women’s publication, we advocate for women’s rights across the board, but we also feel that there is a major disconnect between the two-party system and the American people.

What’s fascinating to us is how third parties have become viewed by the masses as trivial and a wasted option, when in fact there was a time in American history where third parties had way less barriers to entry.  The Republican Party—the only third party in American history to become a major party—displaced the Whigs with the election of Abraham Lincoln. To quote Micah Sifry of The New Republic verbatim: “Historically, third parties in America form when a disaffected minority gets organized around a specific issue or set of demands. That’s how the Socialists and the Farmer-Labor party took hold in several states and many cities for decades in the last century, and how smaller parties like the Right-to-Life, Libertarian, Green, and Working Families Parties have achieved footholds more recently.”

Admittedly, there’s a ton of stuff we do not know about this topic, but we do know that ballot access has become stifled with a ton of red tape and you need a lot of money to gain traction and access. We do know that we believe in having nuanced conversations about the state of the world and that nothing is as black and white as the majority of media outlets make it seem. We asked the below question to Bridget Phetasy—a comedian, straight up—her opinion on the options we currently have and how she feels about the harshly polarized situation we find ourselves in. The hope is that this gets people talking, thinking and becoming more open-minded to new ideas. It doesn’t have to be so shitty. It doesn’t have to be so extreme. It feels agonizing to think about all the work that has to be done to make this country a more just and peaceful place to live—but little changes in the way we even think and approach the options presented to us are a good place to start.

With the election right around the corner, we've been thinking about how unfortunate it is that the two men running--of all the intelligent and qualified human beings in the world-- are the ones we have to choose between. We at The Dandy truly feel disheartened by both dominant political parties in the U.S. and wish there were another viable option, but being an independent is not a realistic or effective option at the moment. We're curious, do you feel alienated by the dominant political parties in America? Or do you feel satisfied with the options we have to align with?

No. I’m not satisfied at all. And I’m not alone. My inbox is filled with people expressing frustration with the current options. Two septuagenarians in their twilight years who don’t seem mentally fit shouldn’t be the only two options for this diverse, young, robust country. 

Like so many Americans, I find myself politically homeless. The process of negative polarization is not only tearing at the fabric of an already strained republic, it’s leaving people disillusioned, apathetic and hopeless. Because we’ve gone to a moral relativistic society and there can be no compromise, you’re forced to identify with a party in total. There can be no dissent and the parties end up alienating a lot of people. The numbers reflect this truth. In 2016 only 55% of voting age citizens cast ballots. That’s the lowest turnout since 1996.

Even more frustrating than the horrible choice is that you will be shamed for expressing a refusal to partake in the sham or vote third party. Every election is the “election of our lifetime.” Every election we are told voting third party is throwing away our vote. It’s no longer acceptable to be apolitical. You need to pick a side—or die. No one telling you to ‘VOTE’ actually cares if you vote. What’s implied is “Vote (the way I want you to vote otherwise don’t vote at all.)” They’ll also make sure to remind you that you’re the reason America will be taken over by commies or fascists—depending on whoever is trying to emotionally manipulate you at the moment. 

This is a false choice. It’s not socialism vs. fascism. It should be “extremes are bad and these options are bad” vs. the rest of us—the silent, exhausted, unrepresented majority. The last debate sounded like two toddlers yelling at each other on the playground. This is unacceptable behavior from two people competing to run for the highest office in our country.

The most frustrating aspect of the duopoly is that there isn’t any institutional support for a third party to even have a seat at the table. This is a feature, not a bug. So not only are people told their third party vote is pointless, that belief is reinforced by the fact that the Green Party or the Libertarian Party aren’t even allowed to present their ideas and have them challenged.

Where is the party of a pro-choice feminist who also supports the second amendment? Where is the representation for those who want small government but also want strong social safety nets for those who weren’t born into the same advantages many of us were born into? What party stands up for free speech, free markets and freedom of association—but thinks unchecked capitalism often puts profit over the well-being of our society and planet? More importantly: Where are these conversations? I shouldn’t only be hearing the most important discussions of our time on podcasts. We deserve to hear multiple candidates having nuanced debates about their different solutions to our many problems—not just two old men yelling at each other like disgruntled neighbors.

We’ve started to remove the gatekeepers from all other aspects of society. Why are we still allowing them to control presidential debates?  The system is rigged. It’s time to evolve. Either we fight to allow new ideas and more than two parties on the stage—or we create a new system that does. 

And the first order of business is believing that we can.