2012, part one

My spine is the tuning fork to some lilting vibrations, and those vibrations are an enhanced and reified sense of anticipation for the general election now that it's more than certain we'll be seeing an Obama vs. Romney ballot this November. Maybe far less than most, but I'd become weary of the primary/caucus GOP race, and though I have strong reservations about the kind of man Romney is (a shrewd businessman, a manager), just the smallest sigh of relief left my lips as I considered the worse situation the nation would be in if a fearmonger like Santorum had unimaginably and impossibly won/stolen the three primaries on Tuesday. So while I find Romney's approach to America (read: as another capital enterprise) and his lack of conviction on issues key to me and mine powerfully dissatisfying, I can at least appreciate his grasp of the ideological landscape and his place within it and his strong verbal skills. I look forward to witnessing spars between him and Obama in the coming months. I look forward to Romney sharpening Obama's pacifistic relationship with the shaky, maybe panicky Israel, and I look forward to Obama fleshing out his plan of nuclear disarmament to the public alongside plans for firmer relations with Putin and Russia. I'd like to see Obama waving the flag on his Obamacare in defiance of, but respectfully of course, the Supreme Court justices. And I'd like to see Romney defend Paul Ryan's proposed budget.