But thats kind of the point isn't it? Some Kanton decides by popular vote to be conservative, and they can do so. They are not forced to follow some politically

But thats kind of the point isn't it? Some Kanton decides by popular vote to be conservative, and they can do so. They are not forced to follow some politically progressive agenda, and so the people are not alienated as in other democracies. The downside is that progress is slower, but the upside is that the system remains stable and there are no backlashes against a perceived "liberal hivemind" or whatnot. Democracy does not mean that sensible things happen, it means the people govern themselves, for good or for worse. Switzerland has found a feedback cycle that works exceptionally well. So you voted to spend lots of money on a football stadium? Well sorry, we can't afford free kindergarten anymore. People learn from this and retain identification with the political system.