At some point, we need more parties, because democracy doesn't work with only two

If every question is going to be settled in Democrats-vs-Republicans terms, you will have a stupid polity.

—"Two parties make us stupid"

This post popped up in my feed the other day, and it's worth reading, but in case you don't feel like doing that, I'll summarize it: Democracy is good because when it's working, the choices our government makes align more closely with what we the people want. And even if you disagree with a particular choice, at least you know it was driven by a bunch of other regular people wanting it and not merely the wealthy and powerful. Democracy is also good because it allows for a wide range of perspectives in decision-making, so that we can make choices with a fuller understanding of the effects they'll have.

But this doesn't work if your democracy is divided mainly into two sides. "You can't make a court only from the prosecution and the defense. Who would listen and synthesize the evidence?" You need a third party, at minimum, that can help figure out what's right and what's wrong when the other two disagree. Otherwise, your politics just turns into a tug-of-war in which neither side stands to benefit from compromise:

A two-party system is a zero-sum game. Whatever weakens my side, strengthens the other side. Matters that should be decided with attention to actual facts about the world become subsumed by concerns over who will be helped and who will be hurt by a given position. No issue, individually, can outweigh the catastrophe that would result if the other side achieved greater power, so neither party can afford to consider any issue on its merits at all. The implications with regard to who will rule wholly outweigh questions of what should best be done.

As the post notes, having three or more viable parties—instead of just Republicans and Democrats—wouldn't fix things all by itself, but it's still a prerequisite if we want to fix things at all. I don't have any suggestions about how we get there; I just think it's important to understand: The challenge for Americans is not to simply try and do better with the political system we grew up with. If we want a robust democracy, we need to change the shape of the system itself.

—

Making calls 6 days per week since Labor Day, I needed this! Be assured that the anxiety is not only whipping Democrats into a frenzy it is motivating them to act. Recruiting volunteers has never been easier. I've also never suffered such venomous insults or gushing appreciation for doing this critical work. 2 weeks... keep the faith in our fellow Americans!

I found this email (from one of you) heartening, and maybe you will too. If anybody wants info about making calls on behalf of Harris or the Dems, lemme know.

—

Oh, and on Friday I mentioned getting some bad news, and since some of you have asked: I got laid off from my position as a copy editor for a national media outlet. I knew it would happen sooner or later, because that's how the journalism industry has worked for quite some time now. It's unfortunate, because Wells Fargo expects us to pay our mortgage in money, rather than complimentary subscriptions to this newsletter, but not unexpected. Anyhoo, if you happen to hear about writing or editing gigs, or other interesting opportunities, or you know anything about how to start an OnlyFans, let me know.

(And definitely feel free to tell people that your close friend Josh needs more newsletter subscribers because he lost his job and has many children to support and is also living with a chronic disease. I'm not proud. Don't tell them the chronic disease is refrigerator blindness, though.)

Good to Know

"It doesn’t cost 60,000 bucks to bury a fucking Mexican! Don't pay it!" Guess which president and current presidential nominee that was, months after promising the family of murdered Private Vanessa Guillén he would help out with her funeral? That's probably the most shocking quote in a new story about Donald Trump by Atlantic editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg—and that's saying something, because the headline is: "Trump: 'I Need the Kind of Generals That Hitler Had.'"

In other news, about other, much funnier quotes, here's Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz calling Elon Musk a dipshit in Wisconsin on Tuesday:

This man is a national treasure.

And this hasn't gotten as much press as it should: Biden is making it easier to cancel subscriptions. At the president's behest, the Federal Trade Commission last week announced a new "click-to-cancel" rule, which says businesses need to make it just as easy to cancel a subscription or membership as it was to sign up for it. No more of this "you have to call and speak to a customer service rep to cancel" nonsense. In six months, when the rule goes into effect, that will be illegal.

The Fun Part

Having a Normal One comes out Monday through Friday. Sign up for a free trial subscription. Posts are free to read after one day at normalnewsletter.net.

Hit me up at joshwimmer@gmail.com with questions, suggestions, thoughts and feelings, tips, and politely worded corrections and criticism. If you think someone would be interested in this newsletter, forward it to them.