Do we need political parties? This question is rarely if ever asked, but it's worth discussion. Perhaps we should rephrase it: How badly do we need political parties? Because certainly the moral cost of having them is high—and rising. Running and promoting political parties in the 21st century is very expensive. Raising sufficient funds by appealing to the idealism of the party faithful is no longer possible, if it ever was. Baser motives have to be tapped, which means corruption in one form or another. And the evidence seems to suggest that in nearly all the Western democracies party fundraising is now the biggest single area of corruption.
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