Politics is making a mess on the religious landscape. The tangling of issues and religion are getting so complex that it takes more than an industrial strength de-tangler to sort them out. The stakes are high in this new political battleground. Rumors are flying, innuendos are being whispered and dirty tricks are being played. All in the name of "faith". Spin doctors have found another piece of turf to pollute, based on the discovery that the religious Christian right (30% of Bush's support system) was largely undecided in this race.

Election 2008 kicks off in grand fashion today as Iowa caucuses and BlogHer wants YOU to make your voice heard. As NPR's Nancy Cook explains, the Iowa Caucus is unlike the general election or even the primaries, "Beginning at 7 p.m. CST, Iowans will gather in their neighbors' homes, schools, churches or gyms for what's essentially a neighborhood party that lasts for hours. The caucus goers advocate for the candidates of their choice. In the case of Democrats, they also debate policy issues such as Iraq, health care or the economy. Then they declare their presidential preference in one of the state's 1,784 voting precincts."

Iowans have long taken pride in the quality of their public education system, and many have been concerned that in recent years K-12 students in Iowa have been dropping in the rankings relative to their peers in other countries and U.S. states. The Des Moines Register reporter Lynn Campbell recently quoted one education advocate: "We don't win when we compete with other kids and countries," [Marvin Pomerantz] said. "We used to win. We were best in the nation. Now we're not the best." Results from the 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress, published last fall, showed that seven states had children who ranked above Iowans in fourth-grade math, four did better in fourth-grade reading, seven ranked higher in eighth-grade math and three scored better in eighth-grade reading. Nearly half the nation's students recorded average scores similar to Iowa's, according to the report.

First: tomorrow we will have an open thread on BlogHer to talk about the Iowa Caucuses- so please check back on the homepage and weigh in with predictions, news, and, if you're an Iowan, real life tales! Now.... We hear a lot about 2008 being a “change” election. But what does change in politics really mean? I’ve put down some vignettes that have struck me in recent days- feel free to add more. Change: Voters care about social good, and they're less Party-identified

Tomorrow night (Sunday, Dec. 30) at about 7:30 pm Eastern, I'm going to be on CNN to talk politics. I've been asked to give my forecast about who is going to win the Iowa Caucus next week. I'm no sage, and as far as I know, it could go many ways on both the Democratic and the Republican sides. What's your prediction? Hillary and Huckabee? Romney and Obama?