His name is Sarp not Sarap.

What would you expect in a country full of rednecks capable of doing harm when their fragile egos are hurt. Still, this particular incident seems to be a personal conduct which can not be directly linked to the PKK. In big cities, Kurdish communities tend to form mafia type organizations in order to get economic advantage. For example, transportation fleets of many large scale organizations have been completely taken over by these de facto groups which do not let other ethnicities to share their income. There are other such groups formed by other ethnic groups but they are insignificant compared to the Kurdish activity.

Until I paid a visit to stay a week or so in Cyprus, I thought we are loved by Cypriot Turks and that it was merely a matter between us and the Greeks. It was a big anticlimax to be labeled as a colonist and imperialist seeking to exploit, enslave and impoverish the island. They consider the Turks from Turkey responsible for the dramatic increase in the crime rate and corruption of their social values. There is a seed of truth in that and these guys cannot deport them or control them the way they want to.

A sizeable portion of Cyprus´ budget is paid by our government every year. Every year the demand gets higher and the protests over economic hardships keep on mounting. When I was there, the islanders working in the private sector were fighting to get siesta breaks -a privilage enjoyed exclusively by the civil servants. I don´t know what the situation is like now but that sounded like a strange demand in a country where the economy was in shambles.

I would prefer my government to withdraw our troops from Cyprus and let the Turkish Cypriot government decide about their own fate.

To be honest, our contact with Pakistan is quite limited. Compared with the presence of European and US citizens from thousands of kilometers away, Pakistan seems farther than it actually is.

In the aftermath of the 1980 coup d´Etat in Turkey, our de facto ruler General Evren established a very candid friendship with your general Ziya Ul Haq. Pakistan was the first country to recognize the junta regime in Turkey. I was a school child then. I remember listening to marches going like : "Pakistan, Pakistan jive Pakistan...". Though there was still not much physical contact, our two countries had converged though at the command of two junta leaders.

I have met one or two persons from Pakistan in all my life. One of them was a lady who for all intents and purposes looks, talks and acts like a Western woman (having studied and lived in Britain).

Symapthy and empathy are usually responded with similar feelings; just like rivalry and disdain. Even if I don´t know much about Pakistan, I am naturally inclined to love people who don´t defy me, ridicule me or try to teach me lessons that I don´t need.

I remember reading an article featured by a mainstream business magazine. The article was entitled something like The Next 50 Years of Europe and it was presenting a very bleak end for the continent. It said Europe would have have an aged population highly isolated from industrial production and commerce which would be taken over by overseas markets leaving tourism the only means of livelihood for the once glorious Europeans.

Well, that was about 25 years ago and we are already halfway through. Europe of 25 years ago was miles and miles ahead of the emerging markets of today´s world. People were affluent, problems were fewer and the governments in charge were still "social" ones or even socialist ones in the case of Scandinavia. Thatcher and her followers changed this outlook a little. Germany followed suit though a bit too late and under the pressure of looming economic problems. Once prosperous nations like Spain, Greece and Portugal began facing economic crises and it is believed that this might indeed turn into a large scale downfall.

Europe has long been a stronghold of the rich and mighty. Today, Europeans are talking about inflation, economic breakdown and unemployment. The only thing that hasn´t quite changed is the aloof conservatism that considers anything European a class apart. This conservatism strangely co-exists with a so-called open market economy that closes all the doors to outsiders and opens up everything for the insiders.

Are the problems of Europe associated with this aging mode of thinking? Are we actually witnessing the end of European style conservatism which has become unable to produce? 

There are still 25 more years left on the calender to the end, should the prophecies of that article continue to turn into reality. There is still not a magic plan or a solution. Weak leaders are running Europe and its influence is diminishing day by day.

What kind of a fact is that? I mean the "might have been" part.

Gokuyum, philosophy is a deep subject. If your statements about Nietzche were right, we would probably not call him a philosopher. Sophistication is a weird process, it may sometimes seem to be counterproductive. It is probably because there are big hollows behind perceived truth and philosophers aim to analyze what is beyond those hollows-a forbidden zone for ordinary people.

Think of the difference between a pastor and the Pope. How come some of us have to be rankless soldiers whereas some of us end up as generals determining our fates? Think of all those innovators and pathfinders and the contributions they have made to an otherwise clueless human population. Some of us produce ideas and the rest of us consume those ideas. Logically, better decisions can be made by people with greater intellectual capacities. Nevertheless, we humans seem to be only capable of achieving sophistication in a limited scope. Those of us excelling in a scientific branch for example, are not necessarily similarly adept at moral,religious or social matters. This is probably because society is technically more equipped, versatile, capable and therefore adept at any particular matter compared the mastery a single person or a group of people have.

Deleted my message. 

With a little bit knowledge of Turkey´s near history, you could point out to the train of thought that resulted in the formation of laws preventing people from insulting Atatürk.

The government established by Atatürk was a result of the organized efforts of a patriotic group with roots in the Ottoman Empire. This group was essentially formed in the Balkans therefore represented more or less a Balkan type of patriotism which was in conflict with the Imperial policies which were more Islamic than being Turkish.

These policies were also more modern in the period they occured, since the bond of religion for the Muslims was getting weaker following centuries of neglect, lack of proper organization and more essentially a common target. Nations and communities were seeking ways to liberate themselves. This is a process which still continues even today.

The new political formation attempted to take advantage of the remnants of the religious bond and produced a new target that appealed to everyone. Misak-ı Milli Sınırları (Borders of the National Pact) pointed out to a map including the areas where Turks had formed the majority (except the Kurdish areas who were then in the same camp).

There were other options defended by other people. They did everything to stop the realization of this plan. They attempted to assasinate Ataturk several times. They collaborated with the occupying enemy forces. They did all of this in the name of God. Even today, we witness acts of vandalism against statues or monuments depicting Atatürk.

As it is seen, there has been a very painful transformation marked with conflicts and intolerance. Atatürk changed so many things in this country and he crushed the resistance shown against his attempts in a rather stern way. He was essentially a Jacobean leader who would do anything for the love of his country. It is quite evident that the new nation was very dear to him and he probably felt himself as the father of his people who were formed of mostly ignorant, neglected and deprived people and needed his guidance.

He put a number of rights and values on table. They were predominantly humane principles which we largely take for granted today. Those included suffrage for women, a democratic republic that allowed people to elect and to be elected; eradication of religious institutions called "tarikats". He pushed these rights and measures as we may call them in a recessionist climate. Recessionists attempts therefore were considered the main enemy of the new regime and laws were passed to prevent them.

This reminds me of that old phrase:

Pek de mağrur olma Padişahım, senden büyük Allah var.

Don´t be so prudent my Sultan, God is bigger than you.

We certainly need good leaders. The power that a good leader has stems from the adeptness he has in organizing matters. If you are a strong leader in business, people knock on your door and pay you all they can, just to be able to use your services.  For the Catholics, the Pope is the man; their daily lives, moral qualities, do´s and don´ts are all affected  by him. If  it weren´t for Gorbachov and his glastnost and perestroika perhaps there would still be a wall accross Berlin. One man´s vision changes many things in either good or bad direction.

For me Atatürk is one such leader who represents a turning point in our country´s history. He came with a plan at a time of utter destruction and managed to reverse the bad fate of the country. Anywhere in the world, people who did  half of what Ataturk did are given a hero status. He is my hero and source of inspiration. When I remember what he achieved in such an inconceivably difficult period, it fills me with hope and confidence about the things we can achieve if we act with the kind of dexterity he had.