Joe, Steve and me

Yesterday, Joe Lieberman, Steve Jobs and I all did the same thing.

We celebrated our birthdays.

Not together, of course, but as Pisces, we no doubt were swimming in the same birthday stream.

Joe and I actually share the very same day of birth back in 1942, making us both 67. I’m not sure what this coincidence signifies, except that neither of us seems the wiser for it.

Lieberman was elected vice president back in 2000 but was denied assuming office by five Supreme Court votes. He’s followed a circuitous path since. A super-hawk on Iraq and no longer a Democrat, he actively campaigned for John McCain last fall.

At times in recent years, I’ve thought of calling Joe to play my 2/24/42 birthday card.

“Joe,” I’d say, “we’ve been through a lot of years together. I think it’s time we compared notes….”

He has a lot more than I do. I’ve tried to keep things relatively simple. If I could share the virtues of simplicity with Joe, it might be worth the call.

Steve, 13 years younger than Joe and me, celebrated his 54th birthday yesterday.

I’m typing this post on one of his elegant machines. I’ve been an Apple aficionado for years even though I’m not one to bond with brands. I’ve made an exception of Apple. It’s part trust (these things are bullet-proof) and aesthetics (my five-year-old iMac still adds a splash of grace and class to my office clutter.)

I learned of Jobs’ birthday only yesterday, but now it’s fun to weigh whether the 2/24 connection mysteriously strengthened my 25-year affinity for all things Apple.

So, a day late, I wish both Steve and Joe well. Steve, whose health may have taken a bad turn, is in particular need of kind thoughts. And, say what you will about Joe’s shifting politics, I’ve always considered him a congenial and gracious guy.

So, Joe and Steve, here’s to us!

Could Palin be gone by week's end?

OK, here's the prediction: Citing "personal problems," Sarah Palin of Alaska will withdraw her name from vice presidential consideration by week's end.

Blame it on Alaska, where long, cold nights are not known for abstinence of any kind.

John McCain will replace Palin with either Tom Ridge or Joe Lieberman, his preferred choices before the Christian fundamentalists howled their protests and stuck him with Palin.

Both Ridge and Lieberman are pro-choice and anathema to the Religious Right.

With no backing from the evangelical "base," and wounded by the Palin fiasco, McCain will plummet in the polls.

That said, we need to remember that he is still running in the United States of America where vote tallies (as opposed to actual voters) twice handed George W. Bush the highest office in the land.

Don't count McCain out until the votes are counted — until, and if, ALL the votes are counted.

P.S. If you want to put money on whether Palin will survive on the ticket, go to the Intrade prediction market. Investing in Palin's resignation is rising as I write this.

Hold the dew!

Before we get all dewy-eyed about Al Gore’s richly deserved Nobel Peace Prize and wallow in what might have been had it not been for hanging chads and butterfly ballots, we should consider four words:

Vice President Joe Lieberman.