the irony of the day? goes to slate, who caught the seating arrangement at the pope's funeral:

The LAT says the leaders were arrayed according to a complex formula that took into account the number of years a country has had diplomatic ties with the Vatican. The result: President Bush sat not far from Iranian President Mohammed Khatami, whom he ignored, along with Syria's Bashar Assad. Israeli President Moshe Katsav, however, shook the hands of both, and talked with Khatami about the city in Iran where they both were born. "Maybe today will make us hope of a future of peace, not of conflict and hatred," Khatami was quoted as saying in an Italian newspaper, according to the LAT and NYT.

i wish the hell i could have watched the funeral now, just to look at the face of bush when israeli president showed some class and shook the hands of 'soon-to-be'? enemies? it had to be about as priceless as the art inside the chapel.