the perils of living in a battleground state

People in states like Virginia and North Carolina are learning the hard way what it's been like to be a voter in places like Ohio and Florida these past couple of presidential elections. Lots of calls, from robots and from real people. People banging on your door. Incessant television advertisements for Barack Obama and John McCain - with some for people like Elizabeth Dole and Mark Warner for Senate and who knows for Congress also blaring from the boob tube.

This article is about Ohio, though. I know people in Ohio who say that as bad as 2000 and 2004 were, this has been worse. Courage, Buckeyes - the phone calls will end within 48 hours, and the television ad buys can return to spots for snowblowers and Applebees.

One thing that would really peeve me would be getting political robo-calls on my cell phone. Hey, that's not just a pain in my butt, that's also costing me MONEY. Senator Feinstein and Representative Lofgren have introduced a law banning robocalls to cell phones. I think that's fair - it's one thing to listen to McObama blather on your TV, but not on a phone call that costs YOU money.

Oh and one other point. The idea of a Sarah Palin presidential campaign in 2012 - whether as an incumbent VP, worse yet an incumbent PRESIDENT, or as a mavericky hockey mom "drill, baby, drill" outsider challenging Washington, fills me with horror and loathing. But I also don't want to hear any talk about Hillary Clinton's options. At least, not until after this week's results are in.