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Now I know that the election season has really begun. I received my first automated phone call yesterday from former Governor Jeanne Shaheen. She was reminding me to vote today in the city election.

Of all the modern political campaign strategies, I find this the most annoying. During the last presidential primary, we would come home at night to find our answering machine loaded with up to 30 messages from hollow voices, urging us to vote for this candidate or that. We even had one from former President Bush, urging us to vote for his son! (My oldest daughter is a registered Independent; that's the only reason I can think we were on THAT call list!).

Now that Wesley Clark and Joe Lieberman have decided to skip out on Iowa, many assume it's just a battle between Vermont's Howard Dean and Missouri's Dick Gephardt. But, a third place finish (and perhaps even a close fourth) could be enough to sustain a candidacy. Something worth considering: the last time Gephardt was running in the Iowa caucus was 1988. Gephardt finished first with 31.3%, Paul Simon (remember the Illinois Senator who wore bow ties?) was second with 26.7%, and Michael Dukakis, the eventual nominee, was third with 22.2%. Then, there was a big fall-off with Jesse Jackson fourth at 8.8%.