A world leader who has sent weapons to Iraq that have killed thousands of people wants to speak this week in New York. While some may protest, I say- let George W. Bush be heard. And Mahmoud Ahmadinejad too. Of course The Daily News and The Post call Ahmadinejad "a madman". Why is it that every world leader who we disagree with goes right to the "madman" category? Isn't there a middle ground somewhere? Of course, the President of Iran has said disturbing things about Israel and the Holocaust. But calling someone a "madman"(remember Sadaam Hussein?) pretty much excuses a rush to war.

I say, put down the weapons and try a more disarming word. Instead of "madman", let's try "Schmuck". Lots of world leaders say schmucky things, but you don't invade them because of it. And frankly, it makes Jews like myself feel better calling someone a schmuck, than a madman.

And what does it say about our country that a bigot like Ann Coulter earns thousands of dollars on speaking engagements across the US, but Columbia University is pressured not to let the President of an actual country speak. And irony lessons are also in order for those institutions who have recently cancelled appearances by authors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt who write in their new book "The Israel Lobby" that debate about the Middle East is stifled in the US. And what better way to show that than to not let them speak?

The only way to achieve peace in Iraq, with Iran and in the entire Middle East is to talk. Some people say, "We tried talking; it didn't work". That's like saying, "I tried breathing; I didn't care for it". Here's a wild idea. When Bush and Ahmadinejad are in New York this week, why don't they sit down and talk? I guess if I brought up that idea to the Bush Administration they'd call me a madman.

I began hosting my live talk show The End Of The Week As We Know It about 4 years ago in New York. I did an opening monologue based on the week’s events, interviewed a guest(The Nation’s Eric Alterman and former Clinton press secretary Jake Siewert among others) and then hosted a roundtable of comedians and writers weighing in on the news of the week. I plan on doing a version of that show on stage and on the Web soon, but today I launch a weekly blog of my observations of the past week. I hope to add video soon.

The Beginning of the End

What provoked criticism this week from both Democrats and Republicans and was called “despicable”? You would think President Bush’s speech Thursday that called for the unjust, illegal war presented to the American people in a deceptive, manipulative way, to continue for many years into the future, would be the words to condemn. Instead, a pun in a MoveOn.org ad is apparently the height of evil and immorality. Using the words Petraeus and Betray Us in a headline, is going too far for Democrats and Republicans, but keeping a large number of American troops in Iraq indefinitely is prudent and acceptable. Once again, Democrats are letting Republicans frame the debate. Republicans shouldn’t be allowed to frame a poster, after years of lying and deceiving us about the Iraq War. Even today, on This Week with George Stephanopolous, Secretary of Defense Gates said the reason we had to invade Iraq was because Saddam Hussein was destabilizing the Middle East. You would think someone who was Secretary of Defense would have a working knowledge of American history from 4 years ago, but just like his predecessor, Gates, as well as the whole Bush administration says the polar opposite of the truth. Our invasion, causing the deaths of more than 3000 US troops and well over 100,000 Iraqi civilians, in addition to creating more than 4 million Iraqi refugees, destabilized the region. So anytime you hear a Bush official talk about Iraq, just realize that the truth is the opposite of what they say. And at this point they might as well say anything. If you’re going to make stuff up, why not go all the way? Tell us that Iraq is getting a National Hockey League franchise. Tell us that now’s the time to buy condos in Baghdad. Tell us that Iraq spelled backwards is September 11. If they brought back the game show To Tell The Truth, no member of the Bush Administration could be on it.

But on a happier note, Madonna met with Israeli President Shimon Peres. Who says there's no hope for peace in the Middle East? The only way to achieve peace is to talk to all the parties involved. Which begs the question- if Israel can talk to Madonna why not talk to Hamas too?

On Saturday, demonstrators marched on Washington to demand an end to the war. The turnout was estimated by organizers at 100,000. Fox News put the number at 12, and said they weren't protesting, they were waiting for the bus.

And President Bush is expected to name his nominee for Attorney General tomorrow. Alberto Gonzalez was asked today why he resigned, and he said he didn't recall resigning. The Bush Administration says it will be searching for a new Attorney General with the necessary qualities -incompetence, deception, willful ignorance and arrogance. So their choice will be someone already in the Bush administration.

Blog Launches September 16

The End Of The Week As We Know It, a fresh, funny look at the events of the past week, by political comedian Scott Blakeman, premieres on Sunday September 16. See you then.