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On 26 September 2016, I watched the first presidential debate of my life. I am not an American citizen. I do not have the right to vote. I moved to New York only a few years ago. I have not had enough time to become accustomed to American political culture, and I do not get the excitement of a political campaign that begins years before the actual election. I do not even believe in elections as the culminating moment of a democratic life, so I am three times removed from the debate that unfolded in front of my eyes that evening. I still enjoy, …

The Oval Office is up for grabs between Clinton and Trump, and I can’t remember the last time that I, living in a capitalist society, as a consumer, somehow ran out of options. If I can get my beer non-alcoholic and my ice cream fat-free, surely I can get my presidential candidate non-corporate and scandal-free, right?

How did we get here? Trump is a shameless liar with no experience in political office; while Clinton has too much of the wrong kind of experience — for example, promoting fracking and selling arms around the world. We are trapped between Scylla and Charybdis. …