@Gammel: here is the scientific explanation about the American two-party-system:
Quote:
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This is why Americans must seem bipolar to Germans, voting in Bush, then Clinton, then Bush, then Obama. To Germans this seems like going from completely wrong, to completely right, to completely wrong, and then back to completely right. To Americans though, it is just wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.
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source:
http://www.andgoodis.com/2010/11/03/...-care-as-much/
copied from the great blog "and good is" - this is from an American who lived for a while in Germany, so he has a kind of a "Bill Brysonesk" view.
He also has a great blog about Germany, playing with many sterotypes about both nations:
http://nothingforungood.com/
Personally I think that the Americans have quite a pragmatic attitude when voting on the state/local level. They seem less partisan than in the federal election and consider the candidate and his issues more than the name of his party. So outsiders/independents have more chances than for example in Germany, where the candidates get appointed by the parties. A disadvantage is that the candidates have to get the resources required for a campaign by themselves.