This seat is saved ... Congressman!

Do you remember middle school, when who you sat next to was a big honkin’ deal? Only gym class was more fraught, I think. And then it came down to who you dodged giant rubber balls next to.

The ultimate affront was when you tried to sit down at a cafeteria assembly, and some kid said, "It's saved!" and stopped you in your tracks. And conversely, the best feeling was when you were situated snugly with your clique. Inside jokes and snotty comments rose up like a cloud of Breck hairspray.

Seating mattered. A ton. But does it still matter when we become adults? Even a fraction as much as it does for 13-year-old girls?

Do you think the seating at President Obama's upcoming State of the Union carries any significance?

There has been a call for mixing it up -- Republicans sitting next to Democrats -- in the midst of what some consider an intolerable level of poison in the public discourse and the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-AZ, a federal judge and 16 others.

Traditionally members of each party sit on opposite sides of the chamber.

But this year Rep. Joe Wilson, R-SC, plans to sit next to Democratic Rep. Susan Davis of California and Rep. Madeleine Bordallo of Guam.

Wilson

Rep. Jeff Duncan, a Republican who was elected to represent the 3rd congressional district last November, sees things differently.

“When the federal government is $14 trillion in debt, there are more important things to worry about than who you’re sitting with at the state of the union,” said the freshman lawmaker.

Duncan

If you were a member of Congress, would you sit next to your partisan frenemy for the speech? Or like Duncan, would you dismiss the idea?