Inside Republican Primary Zaniness, Actual Debate Much media attention has been paid to some of the more outlandish aspects of the Republican nominating contest, writes Anand Giridharadas in his latest Page Two column: Newt Gingrich's call for colonizing the moon, Mitt Romney baptizing dead non-Mormons long ago, or Ron Paul half-joking that New York ought to be renamed Welfaria, Rapetown or Dirtburg. He could have added Gov. Rick Perry of Texas forgetting briefly one of the three government departments he would eliminate as President. Behind the media "circus," though, Anand argues, that rarest of rarities in American political discourse has broken out: actual debate. From the proper role of the United States in the world to the proper role of capitalism in America, there has been real daylight between the Republican candidates. Take foreign policy. "From one corner, we saw a humbler, chastened, less ambitious America," he writes, detailing the positions of Gov. Perry and former Gov. Jon M. Huntsman Jr. of Utah. Or, as Michele Bachmann, a Minnesota congresswoman, put it, in a swipe at the Obama administration's coalition-building: "The United States doesn't lead from behind." " Despite the hopes of the Romney campaign - and former President George H.W. Bush - the contest is not quite over. In the meantime, tell us what you think: Do you agree with Anand that the Republican nominating process has "raised good, powerful questions" and proposed an array of serious, alternative answers? Which ideas do you think the party should carry forth into the general election campaign? Do you think the likely eventual nominee, Mr. Romney, will benefit from the rough and tumble or be encumbered by it?