Marching Under a Foreign Flag

I wonder if any of those AKP supporters, who have recently welcomed Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, were aware that the Palestinian flag that they waved alongside the Turkish flag was once the greatest symbol of the Arab uprising against the Turkish rule.

Yes, the Palestinian flag had originally been designed for the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire in 1916. It is also claimed that the designers were a group of Arab activists at the Arab Intellectual Council in Istanbul.

As Turks seem like they don't care about/know this historical fact, another interesting occurence was observed yesterday on the Arab front:

More than 5.000 Hamas supporters rallied in Gaza, waving Turkish flags and carrying the portraits of Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan after his reactions at Davos. From the TV footage, it could be seen that there were more Erdogan portraits than the portraits of Hamas leaders. Hamas lawmaker Khalil al-Hayeh called Erdogan "a hero" for criticizing Israel over the Gaza offensive.

If Erdogan really likes them, I think that he should move in to Gaza and be THEIR Prime Minister. Of course I sympathize with Palestinians and I am deeply sad about their century-old suffering, but what's happening in Turkey now is what I have always feared: An autocratic leader who is powerful enough to pursue a neo-Ottoman agenda...

* * *

The Trap of Neo-Ottomanism

I feel that the latest mistakes in Turkey's new foreign policy are crucial and they are the results of new strategies, coined by Ahmet Davutoglu, Erdogan's senior aide. Davutoglu is indeed a valuable academic with his deep knowledge. I have respect to his theories, but his "pro-active diplomacy" approach, which states that "all the conflicts in your region are diplomatic opportunities, so always intervene as a possible mediator," is only viable when you have qualified statesmen to practice them.

With a leader like Erdogan, we see that this strategy is too risky to pursue. It doesn't worth to take the risk; because I still can't comprehend what we will gain in terms of our national-interests, if Hamas gets stronger and the secession in the Palestinian Authority becomes official (from de facto, to de jure status). I don't even talk about the negative effects of our worsening relations with the US and Israel and the ethical question about supporting an organization like Hamas, which doesn't care about democracy and human rights in their theocratically-administered enclave.

If we evaluate the history, we see that Turkey's traditional foreign policy has been a policy of balance. And no, it didn't start with Ataturk. Firstly, Sultan Abdulhamid II had practiced this strategy, which basically says, "by manipulating the conflicting interests of the foreign states and preparing suitable ground, you can pursue your national interests in the most efficient way."

Sultan Abdulhamid II did his best, but he had got a crumbling empire after all. It was Ataturk who had perfected this strategy. He politically and militarily defeated Britain, France, Italy, Greece and Armenia (probably the biggest miracle of the last century); he consequently established a modern nation-state, which was followed by the first successful nation-building revolution in our region. Then Ismet Inonu, Turkey's second president, followed the policy of balance during the Second World War and managed to keep his country neutral.

And what are we doing right now? Where do we stand? I guess that we began a new phase: In some Turkish (and Arab/Muslim) forums, I read romantic comments, heralding "the return of Ottoman Empire." This idiocy is a consequence of Davutoglu's remarkable theory, which is currently ruined by Erdogan's uncontrolled (or contrarily, very-well controlled) temperament.

I am not an isolationist, but our foreign policy started to be biased in a nasty way. The recent developments have pushed Turkey towards Hamas, hence Iran and Syria, too much. Many people think that even our too-risky position as a honest peace-broker is at stake. Unfortunately, Erdogan still doesn't seem bothered.

* * *

I Am Confident, But The West Should Worry

Our current position reminded me of the Union and Progress dictorate. They were the first ones who unbalanced Turkey's foreign policy in the last century and then they ultimately chose the wrong side in a war that we could (and should) have avoided. Because of their dreamy political adventure to re-establish Pax Ottomana in the Middle East, we were about to lose everything, including Istanbul.

Prior to the First World War, the Union and Progress leaders were thinking that our biggest strength was the support of Arabs, our coreligionists, who could be mobilized by the jihad call of the Caliph, the Ottoman Sultan. The Turkish leadership couldn't see that the Arab tribal leaders would be opting to go along with the European imperial states, which promised them wealth and political authority, addressing their national interests.

This was how our first neo-Ottomanism project fell flat. The Union and Progress bandits were in complete despair before their blunder. So their mistakes are more comprehensible. However, after almost a hundred years, we -as the generations of the 21st century- are on the verge of the second neo-Ottomanism blunder now and it is much more idiotic.

As a modern nation-state, Turkey is an advanced secular democracy today, unlike any other regional country, including Israel. As a matter of fact, we should keep pursueing our national interests. Solely and purely, national interests...

If the religion -or any other issue- can find a way to be a factor in Turkey's foreign policy, then the balance of this policy cannot be maintained. As a result, the foundation of our establishment, as a nation-state, will be damaged and it will bring about new threats against all of us.

Personally, Erdogan makes me angry and sad. I reject Davutoglu's foreign policies. However, I still believe in Turkey, relying on the depth of our culture and history. Confidently, I'll keep on the side of an independent Turkey, which can sustain a balanced, consistent and strong foreign policy which is based on democracy and human rights, as well as our national interests, not those of Arabs, Israelis, Americans or Peruvians.

In these circumstances, the Western politicians are the last people who have got the right to complain about Erdogan. It was no one but them that had shamelessly supported the AKP as a part of their moderate Islamism program in the Middle East.

Well, face it now...

Erdogan Makes History at Davos

And It Is Not A Good History

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has made history at Davos tonight, by stalking off the stage at the World Economic Forum.

I watched the incident on the TV and I felt that it was somehow surreal.

First, it was the Israeli President Shimon Peres who adopted a rather aggressive manner, while talking directly to the Turkish PM with a raised voice. David Ignatius, the WP columnist who was the moderator of the panel, tried to end the session just after Peres' speech, without giving any more time to Erdogan.

And Erdogan lost it completely at that moment... With an angry, but shaky voice, he intervened and lashed out on Peres harshly. In Turkish, he didn't address Peres in the plural form and that is clearly offensive when you talk to someone you are not closely affiliated with and especially when they are older statesmen. Moreover, Erdogan even said that Peres, in person, "knows how to kill people very well," before walking off the stage to protest the moderation.

* * *

Diabetic Temper?

If you ask me, I would argue that the main reason of the boil was the nature of Erdogan and the enviromental conditions in the Davos panel on the Gaza problem.

THE ENVIRONMENT: You know that I'm not the biggest fan of PM Erdogan and his AKP, but I must admit that Ignatius and Peres have provoked him. Ignatius was not a good moderator -he can even be called a biased one. But Peres, as a Head of State on this platform of free expression, had got every right to talk whatever he wanted.

ERDOGAN'S NATURE: Erdogan is a bomb without a fuse. If you have that fuse, you can explode it easily. It was reported that his diabetic condition is a factor. The furor that you have seen in Davos tonight is what we watch almost everyday in Turkey: A Prime Minister who roasts and roars whenever he confronts a different opinion, whether from an opposition figure or a journalist. And only then he tries to fix things, just like he did during the post-session press conference tonight.

* * *

Electioneering?

In short, Erdogan's latest reaction was probably another spontaneous, natural -and in someway foolish- response from him. The only difference is the fact that it happened this time on the international scene -which always praises him as a democratic, moderate Islamic leader.

Now everybody can see that he is neither democratic, nor moderate because he is not a wise and calm statesman. He can remain as a good politician, though; so we may still take a smaller possibility seriously: Maybe Erdogan's reaction was completely planned.

What could be the purpose?

1) Maybe, with this ultimately populist discourse, he wanted to tease his citizens to get more votes in the upcoming local elections in Turkey.

2) He might have been pissed off by the Jewish lobby in the US. This lobby, which now tries to use the Armenian genocide card to corner Ankara, is also penetrative in the prospective IMF loan to Turkey, which is postponed once again after additional demands of the IMF. Maybe Erdogan is after the Arab capital now, who knows?

* * *

Blame David Ignatius!

Whether delibarate or spontaneous, Erdogan's reaction was more childish than diplomatic, if you ask me. It will make many Turks (and probably Muslims) to sympatize with their worn-down Prime Minister in the short term. On the other hand, it would damage Turkey's reputation in the eyes of the Israeli people and politicians and this would have long-lasting negative effects.

And David... You have pulled the trigger, man. Should I accuse the Washington Post once again, branding a new conspiracy theory, or should I praise the WP staff now for dropping the masks?

More About the EU through Turkish Gas

As I have predicted before, the evolving position of Turkey on energy issues can be considered as a long-term strategy, rather a short-term tactic.

The latest article on EurasiaNet demonstrates it well, heralding a more independent national policy for Turkey and a harder time for the EU, as long as it excludes Ankara from the European decision-making process -and yes, the EU is all about it.

This is not about being hostile or threatening against anyone. This is international politics and it sometimes includes power-play...

The Lunatic, the Stone and the Sane People

We have a saying: A lunatic casts a stone into the well and forty sane people cannot retrieve it.

The following story reminds me of this saying, but I am happy that the stone in the well didn't hurt anyone and it even created some nice sounds.

Atilla Olgac, a minor Turkish actor who become famous with his supporting role in Valley of the Wolves, has been the man of the last week. He claimed that he fought in Turkey's Cyprus Peace Operation in 1974 and he killed ten Greek Cypriot soldiers.

Olgac stepped back quickly, saying that he made it up and his words were a part of the scenario he was writing. "I just wanted to shock people to show them the real face of the war," he insisted. The military records of the time also proved that he was not in the front, but almost nobody cared.

The reactions in Turkey were harsh, because Olgac was saying that one of the soldiers that he killed was a prisoner-of-war. Duly, a significant portion of the Greek Cypriot and the Greek media have also seized the opportunity to revile against Turks.

Personally, I have some reservations about the mental stability of this out-of-favor actor and I think that he just lied to attract some attention. However, surprisingly, I am not upset about the consequences of his indiscretion.

This provocation led to a social discussion in Turkey about the havoc of the war. We also see again that there are wise and responsible people in the Greek Cypriot and Greek media, who can easily balance the nationalist furor, when it's needed.

As we reported today, the Greek Cypriot newspaper Haravgis published the account of an Oxford professor, Ronaldos Kachaunis, who is a Greek Cypriot historian. Kachaunis didn't refrain to tell the massacre that he had witnessed in 1974. He told that 32 Turkish civilians had been hunted, killed and buried in Famagusta in one day. The Greek Cypriot authorities had never identified the killers and this massacre had been forgotten.

And take the mainstream Greek newspaper Politis, which could dare to print the following words: "There are several inconsistencies in Olgac's statement. What if he is just a lunatic? And don't we look at ourselves? Wasn't the burning and looting of three Turkish Cypriot villages in 1974 a war crime? Some might say that it was the EOKA-B militants, but did we ever find or prosecute or sentence any of these murderers?"

With such self-criticism, the Greek Cypriot and the Greek media, or at least a part of them, have given a lecture to the Turkish media. In a similar situation, I guess we would have autocritical articles in minor media outlets, but the bigger newspapers would probably be riding the populist wave. Maybe we learn something now, thanks to this ill-timed lie; so we can be constructively optimistic.

Döner Kebab Had Been Invented

by Iskender Efendi in 1860

Back to the döner issue again...

I remember that I had read a passage from a book by Levon Panos Dabagyan, a Turkish-Armenian historian and journalist. I would like to share it.

The passage is quite enlightening about the origins of döner and who really invented it. I wish that somebody can edit the related Wikipedia articles and add the following information with the reference. (Maybe I can do it later when I have extra time).

The following excerpt is my translation from the pages 181-182 of Dabagyan's book, "The Logbook of Istanbul in the Tunnel of Time." The ISBN of the book is 975-9181-67-3.

BAHCEKAPISI DÖNER VENDOR AND THE BURSA KEBAB

In 1860, Mehmedoglu Iskender Efendi had invented the döner kebab, which was inspired by an ancient Turkish food, "kuzu cevirme" -lamb meat roasted on a spit. At first, his speciality was called "Iskender's döner kebab" and then "döner kebab." The first name was more popular in Bursa, where Iskender Efendi opened his second restaurant after the one in Istanbul, which was called Uc Yildiz Lokantasi (Three Star Restaurant). When Iskender went to Bursa, Kebapci Ihsan Efendi took over the management of the restaurant in Istanbul's Bahcekapi district.

Yavuz Iskenderoglu, who is the grandson of Iskender Efendi, still continues the family business today. The reputation of iskender kebab exceeded the borders of Turkey long ago.

Uc Yildiz Lokantasi had been managed by the Misirlilar, a family who had migrated to rom Egypt. Now they continue their business in Cemberlitas, another old district in Istanbul.

Yogurtlu kebab (kebab with yoghurt) is different than iskender kebab. The people of Istanbul had learned about this kind of kebab, thanks to the services of Ihsan Efendi. It can be made from döner, shish meatballs or mixed meat. Its origin is Damascus.

Baudrillard on Istanbul

I was thinking that I have read everything that Jean Baudrillard has ever written.

Discovering a new article of Baudrillard is a big surprise for me. And the bigger surprise is its subject: Istanbul.

"Water, Empire, Gold, Primitive Stage" was published by Atlas, a Turkish magazine, in 1999. Baudrillard was in Istanbul then by the invitation of the magazine and he wrote this great piece.

Here is a bit:

"It is always difficult to talk about a city. If you were born there, it is very close to you. You share its vice, commonplaces, stupidity and language. If you came from somewhere else, it always preserves its character of an object not completely understood in your eyes. Especially if it emerges from the depths of time like Istanbul...

(...)

At least the river (Bosphorus) imposes everywhere its slowness and its silence with its large boats rescalling icons. At least the city protects its areas of silence despite inroads on all sides: Merging with the dull stones and in their symbolic stagnancy, the small cemeteries under the shadow of mosques, with cats gliding between the graves and teahouses located behind, absorb single-handedly the noise and the rage."

Oh, Baudrillard...

"The small cemeteries under the shadow of mosques, with cats gliding between the graves and teahouses located behind..."

You learned this city in such a short time and you got to know why we were obliged to love it...

PS: Here is the full text of Baudrillard's article in Turkish and English. It's a must-read for everyone who would like to read something about Istanbul.

The Road to the EU -Through Energy

I don't know how many times I wrote about the importance of the Nabucco Pipeline Project and criticized the reluctance of the Turkish government in the last three years. (Here is one of them.)

Turkey has finally started to play out her hand and the Nabucco Pipeline has recently become one of her trumps in the EU accession.

I believe that Ankara's latest approach paves the way to a faster negotiation not only on the energy chapter, but also on the whole process.

Add to this equation the increasing diplomatic power of Turkey as a Muslim country and you'll see the changing picture:

We will observe a closer relationship between Turkey and the EU, making the full membership a greater possibility in near future.

The Day Döner Died

Döner kebab is one of the most innovative -and distinctive- foods of the Turkish cuisine.

There is a misleading story in The Telegraph today, stating that Mahmut Aygun, the man who "invented" döner kebab, has died.

This is not true, because the invention of döner dates back to the 19th century. And the basic form of döner, which is Cag kebab, is much older.

I remember a scene from the great Turkish movie, Who Killed Shadows? (2006). A character in the movie sees a horizontal kebab stand in Bursa of the 13th century, which was the Ottoman capital then. "Why don't you build this cooking stand vertically, so that the meat can roast with its own fat?" he asks to the vendor. The vendor answers: "How the hell can I make the fire vertical, too?"

* * *

Shortly, in contrary to what The Telegraph claims, Mahmut Aygun was not the inventor, but a reformer of döner. By putting the meat inside pita bread and adding sauce and salad in it, he adapted this Turkish delicacy to the Central European palate, as a fast food.

While expressing my sincere condolences on the death of Aygun, I would like to point out another sad story about döner and democracy:

The German city of Viersen has recently banned the usage of the word "Döner" in price lists. The municipality has ordered that the word "Drehspiess" must be used instead. (It seems that this story can be found online only in Turkish and in Dutch.)

The German officials insist that this is just because the fact that the Turkish vendors add different ingredients and the final product doesn't fit into the official definition of döner. Those who sell "döner" are being fined now: 500 euro!

The Turks feel that this is a perfect example of linguistic racism in disguise. They fear that the practice will spread out to other cities in Germany.

If it happens, it would really be the day that döner died. At least in the EU...

Hagia Sofia Will Shine Again

Finally, a good news...

The long-awaited restoration in Hagia Sofia is about to be completed and I am really excited.

I call it the oldest one of the grand cathedrals.

Even the greatest Turkish architect Sinan couldn't dare to shadow its grandeur and he built his masterpiece mosque, Suleymaniye, in another district. It was the mistake of Sinan's successors to put the Blue Mosque just across Hagia Sofia. Sinan opted to contribute from his genius by adding two minarets to this centuries-old building, making it stronger seismically.

The shaky picture above was taken in Hagia Sofia by myself a couple of years ago.

See the ugly scaffolding?

That scaffolding has been there for the last 16 years.

I barely remember how the interior was looking before the reparation had begun.

The dome has to be reinforced anyway against a possible earthquake and its scriptures, which were damaged because of humidity, should be restored.

Now it is announced that they started to dismantle the scaffolding after almost two decades. They are moving it to the last quarter of the dome, which is still not repaired. In June, they'll finish that part, too. And finally we'll see the whole picture again.

Here are some new photos from the dismantling process.

Bogus Verbal Kint is Exposed

For me, Tuncay Guney, the main source of the Ergenekon Case, was a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.

I have finally found the key.

As the darkness is dispersed and this interesting person is being exposed under the spotlights of the state television for hours, it is seen that he is not a mystery anymore.

* * *

What was interesting about him?

He is a gay journalist, who claims that he converted to Judaism and become a rabbi in Canada.

Isn't this interesting enough? OK...

He was detained after he stole a car in 2001. During his interrogation, he told that he was an aide of Veli Kucuk, a powerful, behind-the-scene general. He claimed that the general established a clandestine nationalist organization, which included army officials, bureaucrats and journalists. Guney said that they were on the verge of overthrowing the Islamist government. He was just a 20-something, but giving away so many important names and connecting them to each other without a pause.

* * *

But why isn't he interesting anymore?

Because the extended TV coverage proves that he is just a sociopath, who were being used by some other people. With the content and the way of his talk...

Firstly, he says that the United States helped to establish the Ergenekon gang. Then he decides that the gang is actually anti-American and pro-Russian. He starts with Carlos the Jackal's Istanbul visit in 1970s, ends up with the Shangai Five and the infamous creationist Adnan Oktar.

Simply, he is the Verbal Kint of Ergenekon (well, Keyser Söze was really a Turkish character), but there is a difference: Verbal Kint was smart enough to write his own story instantly. Tuncay Guney is just reciting what was given to him.

Moreover, it is now proved without doubt that the confession video, which is only publicized partly, was actually shot after 2005, not in 2001.

* * *

And who is using Tuncay Guney?

I am still not sure if it is the only group that uses Guney as an agent, but the usual suspect is the Fethullah Gulen movement. After all, Guney was the founder of a TV channel which was belonged to this movement and he was once a teacher of a Gulen-owned school. Here is a must-read article by the Middle East Quarterly, if you want to understand what this movement tries to do in Turkey.

And the fact that the key witness is such a strange figure is a disaster for the Ergenekon investigation, if it's really legal as it was alleged and not a political persecution against the secular opposition. I worry even worse that the sole purpose might be a public attack to undermine the reliability of the army.

Bottomline: Tuncay Guney is not the one to be ashamed of the current travesty. The prosecution and some police officials, who suddenly decided to take this sociopath seriously after seven years on, should be ashamed.

Dis Aci, New Blog in Turkish, is Online

I would like to start a Turkish blog, too. However, I guess I will never have enough time for that.

Now I find consolation in setting up a quasi-blog that I can publish my hurriyet.com.tr articles. Dis Aci, which means Exterior Angle, would be a platform for these writings.

I'll blog them as soon as my new articles appear on Hurriyet's website. Moreover, I have already referred to around 40 articles that I wrote in the last two years. When I have more time, I'll post more for the archive.

Enjoy!

The Difference Between Two Pictures

CASE ONE: Kenan Evren, the general who had become the 7th President of Turkey after organizing the military coup in 1980, has been hospitalized yesterday. He is transferred from his house, which is provided by the government, to Izmir Military Hospital, which is the best medical center of the army near Evren's house (below). All this care is just because of a nasty flu. CASE TWO: Several civilians, including professors and lawyers, are being prosecuted in the infamous Ergenekon Investigation. The prosecutor argues that these people have conspired to stage a coup against the AKP government. We have seen horrible human rights abuses during the investigation and an innocent businessman has died (below) in custody.

THE RESULT: We don't judge the junta leader who organized the REAL coup d'etat. In contrary, we still treat him like a king. But when there is an opportunity, the government can begin daunting the democratic -and civilian- opposition with a mock-investigation on an IMAGINARY coup. Turkey is such an interesting country. Probably the most interesting one...

Moral of a Fable

Politics, especially when it is international, is always filthy and as ordinary citizens, we actually don't know a lot about what really goes on.

Here is a historical evidence: On January 13th, 1966, which is exactly 43 years ago, Hurriyet -the newspaper that I'm working for- had published the letter of President Lyndon Johnson to his Turkish counterpart, Ismet Inonu. The letter was actually two years old. Johnson was giving an ultimatum to Inonu against a Turkish intervention in Cyprus, which was on the verge of a civil strife then. The United States would introduce an embargo against Turkey after the Cyprus Peace Operation.

The official position of the United States didn't change even after a decade. However, we have recently learned that the things were not like they seemed. The phone call transcripts of Henry Kissinger, the US State Secretary after Johnson Administration, have been revealed on January 1st, 2009. They prove that Washington was actually supporting Turkish cause on Cyprus issue. This is probably why Greeks hated Kissinger for years.

After four decades, this difference between the facts and the official positions were revealed to us.

As a matter of fact, now I believe that being a political commentator is ridiculous, as long as you don't have some VIP contacts in the Establishment. Or if you don't have a time machine...

The RCC Award

The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) awarded one of my essays last month.

The theme of the contest was Regional Cooperation in Southeast Europe (SEE) and RCC's mission of promoting mutual cooperation and European and Euro-Atlantic integration of SEE in order to inspire development in the region to the benefit of its people.

It is an honor for me to be awarded by an important organization like the RCC, the successor of the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe.

Here is my essay, which also includes a brief insight about my personal history:

The Story of an Unpublished News Piece

It all started in May 1999. I was a young, wanna-be journalist who ended up at the photo exhibition of Bikem Ekberzade, the only Turkish woman who is a war correspondent. Bikem, as a great guide, encouraged me to search around for the stories myself. After I insisted that I wanted to go to a “real battleground,” she tried to put a bridle on this over-excited youth. “There are different forms of war,” she said. “No need to go to Kosovo or Belgrade for now. You can find on-going wars in Turkey, if you look good for them.”

This is how I made my personal discovery about the refugee camps and the immigrant districts of Istanbul. READ MORE

What We Learn From Gas Crisis

Several European leaders have got a serious problem with their spines.

No, not medically...

Check out the latest news to understand:

"Russian and EU officials on Saturday signed an agreement on the terms for verification of the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine to European consumers, an AFP reporter witnessed."

What does it mean?

Let's summarize the latest developments:

1) Russia wanted to tame Western-backed Ukraine by imposing high prices for natural gas, as it becomes a tradition that we see every winter.

2) Kiev rejected the Russian blackmail. After Russians stopped supplying natural gas, Ukrainians began to steal from the transit pipes.

3) As a result, Russia stopped the supply completely; not only to Ukraine, but also to whole Europe.

4) Ukraine thought that the EU will not back down. They should have kept the pressure on Russians.

5) But no... As the EU leaders saw that the interest of their own citizens are at stake, they suddenly stopped playing the Great Game of Ukraine. The EU signed an agreement with Russia, which would basically force Kiev to accept the Russian interference in her own national gas deliveries.

* * *

In Georgia, we had seen how the United States fell short of defending Georgians against Russia; because it was for the interest of American people.

In Ukraine, we have watched the same scenario, but with the EU this time. Europeans should not suffer for sake of geostrategical power-play; but Ukranians or Georgians surely can.

These two defeats against Russia stand for a dramatic collapse for Europe and the US, regarding their persuasiveness and the potency in the international politics. It also shows the real face of some spineless politicians. You name them.

Maybe I can elaborate on it later, but both of these incidents also emphasizes what a big contribution Turkey can make to the political power of the West in the international arena, if it's not being alienated.

And how the regional balance can completely change if Ankara chooses Moscow's side one day...

Three Weak Monkeys

Correction: Only a few hours after my latest entry, the United Nations Security Council has finally called for immediate cease-fire in Gaza. The United States didn't veto, but it abstained from the vote.

This development didn't disprove my views. The fact that the fighting still continues demonstrates once again that the Security Council is not only a group of three monkeys, but also a weak one.

I still believe that a complete reformation in the UN system is desperately needed to make this organization able and potent to achieve its aims. As we get through this crucial transitional period in the international system, all countries should start talking about such reforms to find a more democratic way in global politics.

The United Three Monkeys

Since 1945, our world has got the United Nations. The UN Charter states that its aims are to achieve world peace and to facilitate cooperation in international law, international security and human rights.

Whether it is justified or not, Israel keeps up with its military operation in a land that it has occupied again two weeks ago. The UN agencies announced that the most of the casualties in Gaza Strip was Palestinian civilians, one-third were children. These are facts.

And in these circumstances, the UN Security Council is blocked by the United States; hence, even a weak call for a ceasefire cannot be made.

As the global economic crisis demonstrates the urgence of a global economic reform, Gaza crisis shows us that the United Nations structure should be democratized in the terms of globalized policy-making. This tragedy proves that the United States or any other single country should not have any veto power, while the rest of the world wants to act.

Or we can just simply change the UN logo as follows:

Our Crazy Professor:

The Brain of Ergenekon?

Prof. Yalcin Kucuk was one of the suspects who were detained today.

The Ergenekon Trial continues with all its absurdities.

Detainments continue. Several legal experts worry, especially on the arrests of defence lawyers.

The most interesting target was a crazy professor. Everybody knows that he's just mad, but they targeted him because he was on the side of the political opposition.

With its initial signals of prosecuting a coup-seeking terrorist organization, the teasers of the Ergenekon case were promising us a good movie. We paid for the tickets and now we see that it is actually a stupid B-movie. With crazy professors, insane conspiracy theorists, revenging Marxists and their allies, who are a group of ultranationalist pensioners, in leading parts.

It seems that this case will remain as the tragicomic trademark of the anti-democratic and oppresive tendencies of the AKP government, which would be portrayed by the history as the Turkish followers of McCarthyism and Peronism.

Nazim Hikmet is Citizen Again

Nazim Hikmet, probably the best Turkish poet ever (maybe only after Baki), is a Turkish citizen again. He was persecuted by Turkish state because of his communist views and he died in Moscow as an exile. His Turkish citizenship was revoked in 1959 and it is restored in 2009 by the decision of Turkish cabinet.

BBC reports that Turkey rehabilitates poet Nazim.

No, it is wrong. Poet Nazim rehabilitates Turkey.

We all wait for his tomb to be moved from Moscow to the Asian lands of Turkey. Hopefully, it won't be a pompous mauseloum. As he says in his will:

Comrades, if I die before that day, I mean

-- and it's looking more and more likely --

bury me in a village cemetery in Anatolia,

and if there's one handy,

a plane tree could stand at my head,

I wouldn't need a stone or anything.

The Quote of the Week

Yet another quotation from George Carlin:

"Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity."

Electioneering in Gaza:

Trouble with Democracy?

Let's assume that there is a serial killer who have kidnapped a kid. The killer uses the kid as a human shield as the police surrounds him.

Do you think that a policeman has got the license to kill the murderer AND the child, if it's not possible to neutralize the convicted killer in another way?

All Israelis should think about this question just now and put pressure on their government, which would like to gain some cheap votes by spilling Palestinian blood just before the February 10 parliamentary elections...

Finally, we should see that this is a problem of democracy. Hamas, as a political organization with terrorist offsprings, had been elected democratically. Just like the Israeli government, which killed more than 100 innocent civilians in Gaza in one week...

Democracy should fix its problematic infrastructure, which reproduces the war machine continously. But would it still be democracy without its conflict-producing quality?

Lord of the Flies

with Salad Dressing

Among Turkish TV shows, the hit of the recent months is a cooking contest.

Yemekteyiz (We Are At Dinner) is the Turkish version of Come Dine With Me. Turkish version means that a bunch of dramatic overtones are added to the original show, which was nice in its own simplicity. So in Turkey, it is a version, but a completely different one somehow.

In Yemekteyiz, each contestant hosts the whole group each day throughout a week. Every day, they vote for the quality of the meals prepared by the current host. Hence, as a contestant, you should mark as low as possible to minimize the chance of your rivals before the final vote count.

During the show, you can see how people can change for money (10.000 TL) and attention (very high TV ratings and share). The contestants are never satisfied by any food whether it is cooked by a Michelin chef or a street vendor. They just want to create an excuse to give the lowest mark to the host. They love to gossip about the others as you can see in every episode when the host leaves the rest for a couple of minutes to serve the food in the kitchen. You hear insults, smear, lies, etc...

Watching Yemekteyiz is like reading Lord of the Flies with adult characters, instead of children, and a dining room setting, instead of a deserted island.

Yes, the overall picture is even bleaker in reality TV fashion -maybe be a hint of decadence in Turkish culture; but there are enjoyable moments, too.

"Your accent is a little bit weird. Are you a foreigner or something?" a male contestant has asked the female one in the latest episode.

The funny thing is that the dialogue was in Turkish, but the inquirer was an Italian guy and the inquired was a French lady.

A gem in the mud, right?.