Where will it all end?

The Wall St. Journal reports that states are locked into competition that resembles a prisoners' dilemma.

For months, states have been leapfrogging each other to move up their primary votes, seeking a bigger voice in the selection and more revenue from big-spending campaigns. But the race has caused confusion among candidates, who must make advertising and travel decisions, and irked some party officials, who want to bring order to the process of picking their nominees.

The traditional early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire are in danger of losing their pole position,

Yesterday, state Democratic powerhouse Debbie Dingell, wife of Michigan Rep. John Dingell, linked the candidates' withdrawal from the Michigan primary to national-party efforts to allow Iowa to retain its historical influence at the expense of larger states. "This election is not about president of Iowa, it is about president of these United States," she said.

PREDICTION: this year, most primaries move to January and February; in 2012, they learn how to get out of the prisoners' dilemma by taking turns.