Six degrees of separation has become a fun game to play.  Also known as the ‘Human Web’, it gives thought to the idea that if a person is just one step away from each person they know and two steps away from each person who is known by one of the people they know, then everyone is at most six steps away from any other person on Earth. It was brought to the public’s attention through a fine  play by John Guare. It definitely fits in with the ‘me’ generation and the idea that the world revolves around oneself.

In that spirit I would share three items about those six (sometimes closer) degrees of separation.

I have definitely had enough of both the Sarah Palin as quitter story (aren’t you glad she is not a heartbeat away form the Presidency?) and the over the top coverage of Michael Jackson’s long public mourning.  But I have not had enough of the Mark Sanford story.  If fact, now follow along with me please – a good friend of mine is from Argentina (she now lives in London).  I asked her if she new Maria Belen Chapur, the woman who is involved with the wacky South Carolina Governor.  She did not know the woman but did know the area where she lives very well, because her husband, (who is British) used to live on the very same street as Maria Belen Chapur when he worked in Buenos Aires.  The neighborhood is posh and is directly across the street from the Buenos Aires Zoo.  The little Italian restaurant that Mark Sanford mentions as part of his love nest and also where he made goo goo eyes is one of my friends’ favorite spots (they always recommend it to visitors).  In fact, when her British husband lived on that street he would have his morning coffee and croissant at that spot.  And to top that off, my Argentinean friends’ former colleague had an affair with Carlos, the owner of the restaurant.  Maybe all of that passion is served in the coffee? Who knows?

I found out the other night while waiting to watch the July 4th fireworks that Sonia Sotomayor used to live in my building.  In fact, she lived in the apartment of the woman I was speaking with. Go figure?  By the way – her confirmation hearings start Monday and newly sworn in Senator Al Franken got a post on the all important Judiciary Committee.  I have not gotten any more of those nightly telephone calls from the Al Franken campaign for money. It is almost time for him to start raising money for his re-election campaign so the phone should start ringing anytime again.  Since I called Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney’s office to encourage her to run for the NY State Senate I am sure her campaign will take the place of those nightly calls soon.

And then there is Debbie Rowe.  We Jews have a saying when something happens in the news.  The collective response to war, the economy, scandal, etc. is – “Yes, but Is it good for the Jews?” A good example of it not being good for the Jews was the trial and execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg or when we found out that the murderous Son of Sam’s real name was David Berkowitz. We took some comfort in finding out that he was adopted.  Oh yeah – and Bernie Madoff was most definitely NOT good for the Jews.  Well, guess what?  Debbie Rowe, the biological mother of Michael Jackson’s two older children is Jewish. Jewish Law says if the mother is Jewish – so are the kids. Oy Vey. There is a joke of late that says Debbie Rowe is the only Jewish mother that leaves her kids alone.

-  If you missed this one, there was even a story called ‘Is Twitter Good for the Jews‘

-  In the always leave ‘em smiling mode, here is Al Franken getting sworn in yesterday.  A nice touch was to have VP Walter Mondale, another Minnesotan, by his side: