And there lies the trap, you all don't really have a choice do you?

You are right, your biggest hurdle is the two party system. Your next issue stems from that, you blame people who don't vote for a party you also don't really agree with. This is not rational but here you are, stuck and unwilling to do anything else. It is telling you reference an election so long ago (2000 if my memory is right is 26 years ago) that it is hardly even in the same ecosystem of shit you are in today.

You have all went so far past the point that doing damage control by voting dem means much (a reason they keep losing is that its been the request for so long people resent it). You are all so far lost that your own people are voting to distroy everything just to feel like they have a choice, but they dont, not at least in a meaningful way. Because the underlying issue is still there, voting dem may delay the process but not stop it as the dems don't have any incentive to fix things, its their whole platform gone if they do.

So yes, please vote left in the primaries, vote dem when you have no other choice. But please push for new parties, support them, lean on your state to push back on federal control, to the point of separation if possible. You can't just keep telling people to do the same things that are not working and be getting upset when even the idea of anything else is presented. Because you will at this rate and course never address the issues, it will never be the "right" time and as you do damage control things will keep sliding.