For all of the political junkies amongst us, it’s going to be interesting to see what polls show at the end of the week. For a few days, there will be one huge (I refuse to use the newly concocted "ginormous" which seems to me to be a lazy new word conjured up by people who watch way too much TV) focus group–namely, all those families who get together in Iowa and New Hampshire and talk about the campaigns at the same time that the campaigns have gone silent out of a sort of respect for X-mas (which is really a self-imposed silence brought on by the media chatter that campaigning would interfere with the sanctity of the holidays…you mean, the opening of enormous amounts of advertising-driven presents, watching a lot of football and drinking a lot? Yes, that sanctity).

    I’m not a slave to polls but it will be sort of interesting to see what rises to the top in a few days after a whole lot of voters get together to exchange information, argue and persuade. They’ve never done this so close to an early caucus or primary–the Iowa caucuses are next week, and have never been this close to X-Mas and New Year’s. I’m wondering whether the gelling of political thought might happen in the next few days in a way that the campaigns might have difficulty undoing between say Wednesday and Iowa caucus night (since New Year’s will also create some black out time).

    And that’s all I have to say today.