I used to be all blustery and such about politics. Then I voted for George W. Bush. Not content with that, I then convinced OTHERS to vote for George W. Bush. End result? I feel extremely guilty about those choices.

The years have softened me, taken the edge off and left me feeling a lot less conservative and considerably more moderate. What does that mean? I'm registering as an independent, no longer comfortable with ascribing my allegiance with one party or another. I know who I'm voting for in the primary (should Texas ultimately matter), and I know who I'll vote for in the general election (not that it matters in Texas...this is pretty safe GOP country, outside of a few odd counties here and there).

Much has been made over the early primaries ahead of the so-called "Super Tuesday", with Obama and Clinton trading states for the Dems and McCain, Romney and Huckabee all taking turns for the Repubs. The end result? Guiliani and Edwards will both be dropping out by the end of the day, with others sure to follow.

While I am glad that the fields are thinning out, for the sake of giving the unwashed masses a better chance to understand who is running (10 on one side, 11 on the other is a BIT much for even those who follow this kind of thing); my joy, if you could even call it that, is tempered by the fact that we are heading into the long slog. Candidates will get particularly nasty and snippy in the coming months. Mud, undoubtedly, will be flung both across the aisle and within party lines. Ronald Reagan will be mentioned a lot. So will JFK. Apparently, these are the best rallying cries either side can muster when it comes to talking of change.

If you read this, and you get the chance to vote in a primary, do not vote for anyone other than the person who you feel most strongly in favor of. Anything else, and you're robbing yourself of perhaps your most precious right as an American. And to those folks who say anything like the following (and you know who you are), please, please stop doing that...it's counter-productive:

"If you don't vote for [insert favorite candidate here], you're a [moron/sheep/asshole/bad friend] and shouldn't be allowed to vote."

I really hope that's all I have to say about the election for a while - though I may, at my wedding, gently remind folks that it is their right and duty to get out and vote in the general election, especially after the last 16 years...