Posted on 06/04/2013 8:59:08 AM PDT by nuconvert
1. Turkey's political ideology
Since the 1920s Turkey has been vigorously secular in its public sphere. Now protestors accuse Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of blurring the line between religion and state by trying to impose the Islamist values of his Justice and Development party (AKP) on society as a whole.
Last month the government introduced a new law cracking down on alcohol, banning the sale of drink between 10pm and 6am and forcing restaurants near schools or mosques to be dry.
The government has also tried to clamp down on kissing in public. Some have also perceived a state recommendation that everyone should have three children as too invasive.
The spark for the demonstrations was opposition to a government plan to turn Gezi Park, the last green area in Istanbul’s Taksim Square into a replication of an Ottoman style military barracks and possibly a shopping mall.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
It’s so predictable to anyone with common sense. Obama’s “Arab Spring” is radicalizing the entire Middle East (I mean, compared to before). Moderate ones like Turkey will become increasingly strict and fanatical. The Muslim Brotherhood is benefitting and either Obama doesn’t know it, or he does.
It is a truism that almost any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so, and will follow it by suppressing opposition, subverting all education to seize early the minds of the young, and by killing, locking up, or driving underground all heretics. [Robert A. Heinlein, Postscript to Revolt in 2100]
6. They are NOT about some locals getting P.O.-ed at Erdogan for taking away their favorite park to build a mall (as was widely reported in the Low Information Media)
On the home front, DOJ has warned us that criticism of Islam or Muslims on social media may a punishable offense, yet we don’t riot.
There are no riots as Americans through the widespread philosophy of reducing ones life to eating, drinking, drugging, copulating, a good bowel movement and attending “The Games.” In short people do not care as to their governance.
It seems to me that the ME is fast becoming what we used to call a TARGET-RICH environment.
They have already arrested busloads of protesters.
And yes, they will come after others when the msm isn’t looking.
Correct
Very informative article. I didn’t know what these protest were about but I do now.
And the religion of the USA here in 2013 is Socialism.
The author is Claire Berlinski, a brave American journalist who lives in Istanbul.
Her writing is vividly detailed and paints a realistic picture of what the protestors have faced over the last few days in particular.
Gut wrenching.
Actually, this is secular Turkey rising up against Islamism. It’s the opposite.
More direct link to article.
This is about people trying to prevent Islamic radicalism from taking over their lives...the total opposite of the Arab Spring......
And why do they suddenly have to prevent it in the first place? They didn’t before.
I’m familiar with Claire. Thanks for the link.
Because Erdogan is drunk on power...
Or maybe it’s part of a pattern. The Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliates are gaining power and influence in the Mid East due to Obama’s foreign policies. They are now entrenched in the governments of Libya and Egypt as a result, and soon maybe Syria. We’re not going to see all the underlying causes and effects connecting one event to another, of course, mostly because of our politically corrected media. But we can see a general theme, which at some point the law of averages makes unlikely as being isolated incidents. When the Mid East blows up in our face, will the real reason for it be lost because no one can connect the dots?
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