hmmm....I liked My Name is Red, but much preferred his New Life. Black Book was fine, but New Life is my favorite of his books. I´ve read most all his works up to Istanbul, which was interesting as a sort of historic/biographic novel, but had no where near the impact of his other more surreal works. 

Excellent article Tunci, did you write it, or is it from some other place? The only problem with it is it´s long and it seems many don´t have the patience to read too many words, particularly when they go against already instilled prejudices. 

I only recently discovered this singer  Kazim Koyuncu

He passed away in 2005, may he rest in peace. His songs have a gentle sweetness and nostalgic feeling. 

I found this site on Ottoman ladies garments. It´s very interesting. Some are Orientalist fantasy, but others seem to be pretty accurate. 

You have a point there, but I do think we are overly reliant on the industrialization of our foods. There is a lot we can do ourselves. I have a small garden. It´s amazing what produce I get from it, and it´s tiny. 

We could grow & process a lot ourselves. 

I got the same one....reported it as spam. 

You know DaveT, it doesn´t have to be that way. I only buy eggs from a lady who lets me see her chickens. She has goats, rabbits, ducks, quail and chickens. I am happy to buy from her as I see happy healthy animals, and this is in the San Francisco Metropolitan area. She has a small lot, but it´s well organized. 

I am very against the industrialized methods of farming. They are inhumane and filthy. I pay more for the produce I get, but it´s worth it. You get what you pay for. 

 Ourtageous...these people are so damned arrogant! Stunning the brain of an animal is not a healthy thing to do at all. Is the animal inspected to see if it´s healthy? Stunning the front of the head can cause parts of dura matter to be spread throughout the carcass, making the possibility of getting  Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the human form of Mad Cow disease.

I have never had any desire to go to Holland, keep your silly country. Ewww....I would not want to eat any Dutch meat...or any meat from stunned animals.

Eating meat means an animal died for you/us to eat it. The least we can do is take care to be respectful of the poor creature. If halal or kosher slaughter is done as intended, it is not cruel to the animal. I have seen many halal slaughters, and have not seen animals screaming and writhing in pain.

Oh dear Elham, you have been missed. 

FWIW....Religious affiliation does not have to do with blood lines, it´s of the heart. 

I have friends who are Armenian, but not Christian. I hate it when people think because you are XXX you must be Catholic, or Jewish or Muslim. You are what your heart tells you you are. Too many subscribe to religions of which they have no knowledge about, it´s just because their parents, grandparent...

I know Jews say they are Jewish, even if they don´t practice or believe in G-d. This is hard for me to grasp.....but one certainly can´t seriously claim to be a Christian, Muslim or whatever, without believing in the basic tenants...however...too many claim just such identities.

How many actually know the difference between Unitarianism and Trinitarianism? I have to laugh when I hear people saying they are Catholic, but they don´t believe in what the Pope says....really...then are you really Roman Catholic....? The Catholic church doesn´t let people go easily once they have been baptized...something babies have no control over. That said, I think their numbers are overly inflated given the fact that they actually count all those baptized babies as members of the Catholic church. I know many who do not practice at all, and in fact have joined other faiths.