If you voted for Nader in Florida in 2000, you gave us Bush 2.0 and Bush/Cheney's Mission Accomplished.
If you voted for Jill Stein in MI, PA and WI in 2016 you gave us Musso-mini Trump.
If you voted for Ross Perot in 1992, you helped elect Clinton over Bush 1.0. I liked that outcome, but the point is the same as the first two examples.
In a first past the post system with an electoral college and without ranked choice voting, third parties are pointless unless congress is elected in multi-member districts (https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2023/07/proportional-representation-house-congress/674627/).
Explaining Russia's genocidal war against Ukrainian statehood with reference to US politics when Ukrainians have been fighting to decolonize their country for more than three centuries illustrates the American-centric collective narcissism Americans see the world. The Russia-Ukraine War isn't about you. It's about Putin's regime preservation against the Ukrainian threat of the good example. it's about the Russians' view of Ukrainian identity as a mental disorder to be cured by force of arms and extermination:
"Russia-aligned leader in the Donetsk “People’s Republic” of Ukraine Pavel Gubarev – Russian State TV Excerpts – translated by media monitor Julia Davis (Oct. 11, 2022)
“These are Russian people, possessed by the devil. We are coming to convince them, not to kill them. But if you don’t want us to change your minds, then we will kill you. We will kill as many of you as we have to. We will kill 1 million, or 5 million; we can exterminate all of you until you understand that you’re possessed and you have to be cured. Zelensky is the main possessed one there, he is really the devil’s spawn."
From former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev:
“Deep Ukrainianism” is a fictional concept “fueled by anti-Russian poison and an all-consuming lie about its identity, is one big fake. This phenomenon has never happened in history. And it doesn’t exist now.” (April 5, 2022)
Ukraine will “suffer its own fate” after having “mentally transformed into the Third Reich, having written down the names of Jews and Nazi henchmen into history books. This is its path, of such Ukraine.” (April 5, 2022)
Russia’s “most important goal” is to “change the bloody and full of false myths consciousness of a part of today’s Ukrainians.” (April 5, 2022)
“History will put everything in its place and show which side the truth is on. Who became the custodian of true Christian values, protecting them from atheists, bandits, and nationalists.” (April 27, 2022)
“Zelensky has no other way to stay in office. If, of course, the position itself remains.” (May 3, 2022)
“I am often asked why my Telegram posts are so harsh. The answer is I hate them. They are bastards and geeks. They want death for us, Russia. And as long as I’m alive, I will do everything to make them disappear.” (June 7, 2022)
“I saw a message that Ukraine, under Lend-Lease, wants to receive SPG-9 from its overseas owners with payment for delivery in 2 years. Otherwise, next winter it will simply freeze. Just a question. And who said that in two years Ukraine will even exist on the world map?” (June 15, 2022)
