Grapevine: Place your papal bets

Bookmakers set odds on who will be the next pope

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Playing Papal Odds

Within hours of the announcement of the pope's resignation bookmakers had placed odds on who his successor might be.

The betting website "Paddy Power" is giving gamblers a chance to put money on who the next pope might be, the length of the papal conclave, or what the papal name might be.

The early favorite -- Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana with three-to-one odds. Cardinal Timothy Dolan is at 25 to one.

One of the long shots -- Bono -- yes, that Bono, with one-thousand-to-one odds.

One person you can safely bet against -- Vice President Joe Biden. When asked about the pope's resignation today, he told reporters -- quote -- "I'm not running."

High and Dry?

The man claiming to be the Seal Team 6 member who killed Usama bin Laden, has left the military and he says he lost all his benefits and pension.

The elite Navy SEAL-- who is not being identified -- tells Esquire magazine he left the military three years shy of the 20 necessary for retirement benefits. Quote -- "My health care for me and my family stopped Friday at midnight," He told Esquire -- quote -- "I asked if there was some transition for my Tricare to Blue Cross Blue Shield. They said no. You're out of the service. Your coverage is over. Thanks for your 16 years. Go 'blank' yourself."

The Navy released this statement -- quote -- "We take seriously the safety and security of our people, as well as our responsibility to assist sailors making a transition to civilian life. Without more information about this particular case, it would be difficult to determine the degree to which our transition programs succeeded."

Changing Fortune

And finally, the world's largest fortune cookie company is toning down its messages after complaints that they were too racy.

The New York Post reports Brooklyn-based Wonton Food received complaints from parents who said their children were bothered by messages like -- quote -- "One who admires you greatly is hidden before your eyes;" "romance and travel go together;" and "the evening promises romantic interest."

The fortune writers say the cookies are supposed to be fun for everyone, so they've gotten rid of these suggestive fortunes.

This isn't the first time though sensitive fortune readers have persuaded them to tweak a message a bit. They got rid of -- quote -- "you will inherit a great fortune soon" over complaints it implied relatives were about to die.