David Warren: But With Attacks in Istanbul, Terrorist Group Has Awakened a Sleeping Giant

The Ottawa Citizen ^ | November 22, 2003 | David Warren

[lizbet]

Another clear minded article of David Warren from the beautiful country of Canada! Please keep on posting his articles here on FreeRepublic!

[Swiss]

If the Turks found out that Sryia had supported the terrorists then maybe they will do the World a favor and reabsorb Sryia into the Ottoman Empire.

[VOA]

ping...article might be of interest

[blam]

Yup, thanks.

[CWOJackson]

Interesting read...

[Travis McGee]

Ping

[a_Turk]

>> While the actual targets were Jewish synagogues last week and a British consulate and bank this week, it appears that Turkish public opinion was not impressed.

Thanks for the ping.

Those were the physical targets, but the actual target was our system, and those Turks among us who are confused and impressionable, and torn between the opposing viewpoints on secularism. But we are too far gone for Al Murder to succeed, our right to vote, our far reaching women's rights alone preclude a return to that backward system. Our women alone would see to that..

[tiamat]

Bless you, FRiend!

Stay safe!

Tia

[a_Turk]

Thanks, and you too :)

[maica]

Our women alone would see to that..

This made me smile. I think the women in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran are also waiting for a chance to be where the women of Turkey are politically.

Love your comparison of liberals and conservatives on your home page, too. You are so right that the libs always have the 'grown-ups' to fall back on when their experimentation goes awry.

[a_Turk]

>> This made me smile.

Here's a picture of a Turkish woman carrying a cannon round to the front during WW1:

[Tolik]

David Warren - Clear-thinking Canadian -  BUMP  [please freepmail me if you want or don't want to be pinged to David Warren articles]

If you want to bookmark his articles discussed at FR: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/k-davidwarren/browse

His own website: http://www.davidwarrenonline.com

His page at the Ottawa Citizen: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/columnists/davidwarren.html

[MEG33]

May Turkey be free from terrorists and theocratic tyranny.

[Tolik]

Soliciting your opinion, superflu?

Quote from David Warren:

While the actual targets were Jewish synagogues last week and a British consulate and bank this week, it appears that Turkish public opinion was not impressed. The effect of the bombings has been to weld together the Erdogan administration and the Turkish military, who previously looked suspiciously upon each other. And the Turkish generals, commanding the most powerful army in the Middle East, are now aching to strike back at Syria and possibly Iran, which are believed to be sheltering the organizers of the Istanbul bombings. Another sleeping giant has been waked.

Al-Qaeda and its allies have, it seems, seriously miscalculated. Turkey in the future will be a much more reliable and active ally to the U.S. The recent blasts in Saudi Arabia -- in which Muslim Arabs were the intended victims -- have meanwhile tended to confirm that al-Qaeda has lost the financial support of senior Saudi princes (who paid "protection money"). The failure to mount terrorist strikes in London during U.S. President George W. Bush's visit speaks for itself; Istanbul was the closest they could get.

All these things, on top of new regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq, are evidence that Bush and company are making progress. But the bloodletting is far from over.
 

[MEG33]

FYI

[js1138]

The most damaging thing about this for the AQs is that it gives us an ally which can bridge the language and cultural barrier for gathering intelligence.

[headsonpikes]

Bump another great Warren piece.