Would we better off w/o them?
Well, I think that American democracy is fine, so I guess it's sort of a false premise. As to the parties, I live in California, and during the recall election, when there were something like 200 candidates on the ballot, everyone complained and called it a circus. That is life without parties. Every developed country has parties and a certain degree of loyalty attached to those parties, so is there something our parties do that others do not that makes them a superior democracy?
Of course. But our sheeple are afraid of anarchy.
No and No The party system is what makes this country great.
