[Slansitartop]

Deadlocks aren't actually all that bad, in my humble opinion. They encourage stability when the major factions disagree strongly but have similar levels of support. The alternative is whip-lash policy changes as control changes, which I think would be much worse.

I think the real problem in America is too much centralization. If more policy was made locally, it could be adapted to match diverse local conditions and attitudes, and the preferences of other regions wouldn't be as threatening. Unfortunately the winner-take-all aspect of centralized politics makes the sides more entrenched.

Do you think the current Chinese government is helping or hurting with the attitudes that lead to the appeal of "elect me and we'll take Taiwan back by force"? Seems to me there's some danger of things going badly if they don't prep the ground for democracy and lose control somehow.