Unless something really interesting happens, I won't be getting professionally involved with any 2006 campaign except through my company. I don't see myself joining up, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to do some work to help Democrats win. Breaking the GOP lock on the Federal Government is important enough in its own right: competative balance is the only way we can hope to stem the tide of corruption and enforce some semblence of accountability on the White House.

Toward that end, there are some possibilities. There are seven GOP senate seats in play at this point. If you happen to live in PA, MO, OH, RI, MT, TN or AZ, there's important work to be done organizing now to help take down some of the most corrupt (DeWine - OH, Talent - MO, Burns - MT) and repugnant (Santorum - PA) members of the Senate. Even if your GOP Senator seems like he/she is maybe allright, think about digging in to help swing the national balance.

On the house side, things are more tricky. Most districts are heavily gerrymandered, but with the national mood turning against corruption and an entrenched establishment -- and with DeLay's scandals making headlines every week -- there's the possibility for the kind of sea change not seen since 1994's "Contract with on America."

Anyway, if you're fired up about stuff, now is a good time to start looking for where to plug yourself in. It's also a good time to start thinking about giving/raising a little bit of money if you're in a position to do so, as "early money" is quite valuable to a lot of campaigns.

I may do some volunteer fundraising later in '06, and will let everyone know what donations I make (not likely anything more than $20 here and there) myself.