Ranting about third parties is what Americans do because they're too lazy to actually participate in the current two-party system which ISN'T GOING AWAY ANYTIME SOON. Participation means being active members of a party and engaging in party politics. It's not rocket science folks it's just having the balls to participate in and reform political institutions. There will always be a new batch of novices, however, who will go through the oft trodden path of learning the hard way about third parties. Americans have never been fast learners when it comes to politics and they want easy answers to difficult problems. In short, they have a tiny attention span and low political intelligence for the most part. One indication of this is how Democrats get so fired up about presidential elections then don't show up for mid-term elections. The former are so "hollywood" while the latter actually require informing oneself on candidates and issues. Americans have a political process that reflects them.