The noted blogger Fjordman is filing this report via Gates of Vienna.
For a complete Fjordman blogography, see The Fjordman Files. There is also a multi-index listing here.
Thomas Friedman of The New York Times believes that the reason for Turkey’s Islamic radicalization is that the country hasn’t yet gained full access to the European Union. In other words, he blames Europeans for not allowing another 70 million plus Muslims free access to their countries.
Mr. Friedman is widely cited as an “expert on the Middle East,” despite the fact that most of the pronouncements he has made about that region over the past decade have been demonstrably false.
As late as in 2005, Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf topped the bestseller list in Turkey, second only to a book about a Turkish national hero detonating a nuclear bomb in Washington D.C, the capital city of its NATO “ally,” the USA. Yet Mr. Friedman, an American Jew, is not at all concerned about this. His main worry is that Europeans are being mean by not committing cultural suicide fast enough.
Letter from Istanbul:
- - - - - - - - -
A series of vacuums that emerged in and around Turkey in the last few years have drawn Turkey’s Islamist government — led by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party — away from its balance point between East and West. This could have enormous implications. Turkey’s balancing role has been one of the most important, quiet, stabilizers in world politics. You only notice it when it is gone. Being in Istanbul convinces me that we could be on our way to losing it if all these vacuums get filled in the wrong ways.
The first vacuum comes courtesy of the European Union. After a decade of telling the Turks that if they wanted E.U. membership they had to reform their laws, economy, minority rights and civilian-military relations — which the Erdogan government systematically did — the E.U. leadership has now said to Turkey: “Oh, you mean nobody told you? We’re a Christian club. No Muslims allowed.” The E.U.’s rejection of Turkey, a hugely bad move, has been a key factor prompting Turkey to move closer to Iran and the Arab world.
10 comments:
Many years ago I saw turkish cypriots in London. They were pretty well all criminals even if not spouting Islam. Now they surely would be.
I think Germany in particular suffers from Turks.
Friedman seems not to realise that EU membership won't stop the rot in Turkey. Will just give the EU yet another 70m potential welfare parasites.
Bottom line? Wr don't need them so sod off.
In hoc signo vinces
The achilles heel of Turkey's influence in the ME is Israel, as for Europe its influence is being attracted westward by the disintegration of cultural resolve - ultimately if it can not resist temptation it is in for a bloody nose.
"His main worry is that Europeans are being mean by not committing cultural suicide fast enough."
Sounds like Friedman, all right.
The first vacuum comes courtesy of the European Union. After a decade of telling the Turks that if they wanted E.U. membership they had to reform their laws, economy, minority rights and civilian-military relations — which the Erdogan government systematically did — the E.U. leadership has now said to Turkey: “Oh, you mean nobody told you? We’re a Christian club. No Muslims allowed.”
Using this already shattered lens as his primary objective, Thomas Friedman then goes on to make even more blurry distinctions. Europe a "Christian club"? Exactly where in Hell did all those Muslims come from then, did they just pop up like mushrooms? What about all that support for the Hamas terrorists? That's certainly no passing fad.
The E.U.’s rejection of Turkey, a hugely bad move, has been a key factor prompting Turkey to move closer to Iran and the Arab world.
As if the near-reflexive mechanism of Islam's self-polarization had absolutely nothing to do with it.
But as Turkey started looking more South, it found another vacuum — no leadership in the Arab-Muslim world.
And, once again, exactly how is this the West's fault? Except for the fact that we did not sequentially exterminate each and every "strong horse" Islamic tryrant that took the lead, a huge majority of craptacular MME (Muslim Middle East) "leadership" is the direct byproduct of Islam itself with little or nothing else to pin any blame on.
Unfortunately, it is not because he is promoting a synthesis of democracy, modernity and Islam, but because he is loudly bashing Israel over its occupation and praising Hamas instead of the more responsible Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, which is actually building the foundations of a Palestinian state.
Another dose of complete and total hogwash. The "more responsible Palestinian Authority" is like saying the "the more socially functional Ted Bundy" as compared to awkward Jeffery Dhamer. They're both twisted and remorseless serial killers, fer flock's sake.
Gah!
When you read Friedman's entire essay it isn't as bad as GoV's summary. Friedman is worried that Turkey is increasingly focused on joining the Arab League rather than the European Union. Turkey's support of the Mavi Marmara caper shows that they are vying to be the meanest Muslims on the block. Turkey could, instead, be a model of progressive democratic rule, but they aren't. That worries Friedman, and it worries me, too.
Fjordman, you're a smart man. Why do you keep reading what this idiot writes? lol.
I wonder if he applies this logic to Palestinians and Israel - like that Palestinians dislike Jews because the Jews are mean and not inclusive.
Anyway, in the end the truth of the matter is that Turkey has no business in the EU. And I don't care if it goes into the Arab League. The only country who would be harmed by it is the world policeman - the United States. If Europeans had balls, what Turkey does is irrelevant. Also 'progressive democratic' rule is the problem.
ChrisinLA wrote,
"Turkey could, instead, be a model of progressive democratic rule, but they aren't."
Well, no, they aren't, and they've never really been either.
Hey, why not Indonesia or Malaysia? Or Bangladesh? I'm sure they've got just as many "progressive, democratic" politicians as Turkey--why shouldn't they get to join the EU too?
They aren't European.
You don't say?!
I find it absolutely surprising, yes shocking even, that a jewish writer in the NYT would advocate the destruction of White European Nations through immigration of mohamedans.
I mean: that's not in the jewish interest at all, is it now?
Bewick's comment on this article starts with "Many years ago I saw turkish cypriots in London. They were pretty well all criminals even if not spouting Islam". Is this not the height of ignorance? A racist accusation without proof, writing that turkish people are criminals even without spouting Islam". What about "I saw a german and he was obviously bad, even without speaking german.
Racism comes from ancient behavior where the stranger is dangerous. We know the members of our village, but the stranger can hurt us unpredictably. As the populations grow and nuclear weapons are but a small part of our WMA, we must grow beyond that primitive ignorance which only reveals an uneducated mind.
The mathematical biology of human behavior means we have to learn how to get along and how to manage our planet, else we face an extinction event.
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