Posted on 12/22/2013 11:34:46 AM PST by Texas Fossil
There's a very big story developing in Turkey that all foreign policy mavens should be watching closely. Exactly how big remains to be seen, but the stakes are huge. At issue: Will the decade-long domination of Turkish politics by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamist-leaning Justice and Development Party (AKP) continue? Or is the Erdogan era about to come crashing down, fatally weakened by scandal, infighting, and authoritarian overreach?
Early Tuesday morning, police in Istanbul and Ankara carried out a wave of stunning arrests that included powerful businessmen, the sons of three cabinet ministers, and the head of an important state-owned financial institution, Halkbank. The operation flowed from a series of corruption-related investigations that have apparently been underway for a year or more. All the key targets swept up in the raids are closely linked to Erdogan's government.
(Excerpt) Read more at foreignpolicy.com ...
Thanks AdmSmith.
While in college, older journalism student (and good buddy) played a cassette tape copy for me; the contents were in some foreign language, and it was purportedly a cabinet meeting of the last Shah of Iran.
The Shah et al was supposedly discussing an idea wherein various covert agencies would stir up trouble with violence directed at both gov’t and against the jihadists who not long after took over (thanks to the de facto collusion of Jimmy Carter, Walter Mondale, and Zbig-boy).
The alleged idea was, the violence would turn the Iranian public (which had been completely disarmed by the Shah’s regime, unable to defend itself) against the jihadist uprising.
My journalist friend suggested that *I* should write the story about it, as he was unable to do it, he couldn’t have any solid connection with the tape. Since I didn’t understand what was being said on the tape, nor did I know its provenance, I wasn’t willing to do it, period.
It occurred to me at the time (and nothing has emerged to make me doubt it) that the tape and the “explanation” was a manifestation of an agitprop campaign against the Shah, orchestrated from outside of Iran.
It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that this purported tape of Erdogan is the same kind of thing.
And the same source is building the meme.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3104397/posts?page=17#17
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3104397/posts?page=34#34
Thanks.
I knew he was in difficulty, but did not know it was that bad.
His reactions are revealing of his crime.
Will it bring him down? I sure hope so.
Turkey does not need to go over to the “dark side” (Islamist).
They have always been lack lustre, but solidly controlled by the military.
Turkish POLs are another matter. Like ours.
I still have no clear understanding of the ultimate objectives of Gülen. From a critical article:
The Gülen movement has two sides: One that faces the world and another that hides from it. Its finances are particularly murky. Rich businessmen donate millions, but civil servants and skilled manual workers also contribute to the financing of Gülen projects. Fethullahcis donate an average of 10 percent of their income to the community, with some giving up to 70 percent.
Gülen likes to portray himself as a modest preacher akin to a Muslim Gandhi. One of his mantras is: “Build schools instead of mosques.”
But before he moved to the United States, Gülen treated the West as the enemy. “Until the day of judgment,” he wrote in his book “Cag ve Nesil” (This Era and the Young Generation), “Westerners will exhibit no human behavior.” Gülen condemned Turks who embraced Europe as “freeloaders,” “parasites” and “leukemia.” http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/guelen-movement-accused-of-being-a-sect-a-848763.html
A 45 min video:
http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/15012014
Turks have some really bad choices.
In practice democracy in this type of society is at best, very difficult to make work.
Our founders understood only a moral people could make our
Constitution work. It is argued that we are no longer that, and the effects show.
Likely well before that. Clinton, Bush and Bush are all FOSAs - Friends of Saudi Arabia (or at least their money).
Gulen = bad guy
Erdogan = bad guy
This is an enemy of my enemy situation and a failure of EU leadership. PC is the cause.
Gulen is a bad guy. The schools exist as part of a long term plan, not much different than the propaganda fed to students in government schools. It’s mind control with political control as the purpose. Gulen is a cancer in American and the world.
The destruction of Turkey:
My cousin has been a physics teacher for twenty years. During the last five years she was made to hand over her physics classes to a member of an Islamic tariqat [order]. She was told to remain at the teacher’s common room during her class periods, so that it looked as if physics was being taught at that hour as stated in the curriculum. For five years those pupils learned nothing about physics - and all about jihad. She felt incapable of changing the situation and therefore she resigned.
and here is how he is financing it
http://pjmedia.com/spengler/2014/09/24/erdogans-flying-carpet-unravels/
It will soon crash.
David Goldman aka Spengler on Turkey: The sick man of Europe, once again
Turkey’s political crisis stems from profound economic weaknesses, demographic imbalances and confessional, social and ethnic fractures. Whatever emerges from the coup attempt, it will take a great deal more than a change at the top to cure the sick man of Europe.
http://atimes.com/2016/07/the-sick-man-of-europe-once-again/
and another article about Hizmet (Gulen Movement) by Bayram Balci
http://carnegieendowment.org/2014/02/04/g-len-movement-and-turkish-soft-power-pub-54430
but still I have no definite idea on what to think about Hizmet.
Sounds like a cult
-—videotape of a government minister with close ties to Erdogan accepting a seven-figure bribe——
Hillary never allows video tape of her speeches that are the fig leaves for her bribes. She gets bribes totaling 8 figures meaning that when it comes to bribes, the turks are pikers
That was investigated in the Netherlands in 2008 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%BClen_movement
While it has an estimated 3 million official members and 10 million additional supporters, the group’s inner workings are shrouded in secrecy. “It’s organised like a cult,” a French researcher told FRANCE 24, speaking on condition of anonymity. “In certain places where they meet in Istanbul, it really feels like you’re in a Scientology centre. Leaders make speeches about universal love, and distribute pamphlets with photos of celebrities on them. Private classes are given, but we don’t know if the teachings are religious or not.”
The movement’s leaders are indeed known as masters of discretion. “They are very concerned about their image, which they control entirely. Most members are not even allowed to talk about the movement,” the French researcher explained. “The way it functions is totally opaque, which is reminiscent of Freemasons.”
The Turkey that was an ally no longer exists under Erdogan. It must.not be considered for entry to EU.
Gulen has a vast global network that will not be destroyed by Erdogans latest purge of 2000+ judges, military, police etc. Gulen will be ,as usual, very patient.
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