Yes, but "no perfect option" doesn't imply "no better option". I could also counter that the extra weight to "minority extreme views" is much less of an issue

Yes, but "no perfect option" doesn't imply "no better option". I could also counter that the extra weight to "minority extreme views" is much less of an issue than most votes in most US states being meaningless because of the first past the post system on a state basis. But I don't really see this as a meaningful discussion, it's undebatable that the US system is flawed to the point where it can't be called a real democracy.