Military Coup in Turkey

No chance of entry to the eu now then.

Scooot posted:

No chance of entry to the eu now then.

Was exactly my first thought after listening the news.

Every time I think things can't get worse in the world...

It's sad that this is still possible in a relative modern country...

But it's becoming less 'modern', hence the Coup. The Military are very pro secular state. The Government less so...

Scooot posted:

No chance of entry to the eu now then.

Astonishing news!

Regarding your statement, that pretty much depends on how this pans out. Early signs seem to suggest that this has been done to protect and reinstall democracy. Long story short, those in charge feel that Erdogan has overstepped his role as president by a very long margin. Unlike in other countries the Turkish president has a representative role to play only. Erdogan, though, has steadily seized more and more power, ruling the country in a way that is resembling a dictatorship. Good riddance, if this goes through.

That said, don't get me wrong, I am not in favour of Turkey joining the EU. They have a very long way to go yet before this can even be contemplated. Most countries in the EU hold that view.

Except the Leave camp of course, who are convinced that Turkey will join the EU tomorrow. 

JamieWednesday posted:

But it's becoming less 'modern', hence the Coup. The Military are very pro secular state. The Government less so...

+1

Whilst a military coup is worrying, if it leads to a move back to a more secular society this may be a good thing. Not sure what how this will affect Turkey's involvement in NATO though.

Good to know that we've got an experienced statesman in charge of the FCO at this time. Apparently Boris is "very concerned".

Boris is looking up where Torquay is.

Many people in the streets protesting against the coup. It seems it will not prosper.

sjbabbey posted:

Good to know that we've got an experienced statesman in charge of the FCO at this time. Apparently Boris is "very concerned".

Joking apart,  Boris's great grandfather was Ali Kemal a political journalist who was murdered during the Turkish war of independance.   I'm guessing, but I can imagine his journalistic gibes at Erdogan's relationships with goats is a bit personal 

And don't sell Boris short,  the yaboo buffoon persona is all front.

Mike,

The likeable chappie image may well be a front but his lack of preparedness after the brexit result and being outmanoevered by Gove over the leadership does not fill me with confidence.

Not disagreeing, but i'm not sure the knife in the back from slimeball Gove was outmaneuvering.   I'm just saying don't underestimate him, it might be avoiding the brown stuff & banana skins might prove a challenge,  time will tell.  He was my MP for a while when he did more in his short tenure than his predecessor Heseltine did in 27 years.  Ditto for London,  he gets stuff done,  but hang on it will be entertaining. 

Erich posted:

Many people in the streets protesting against the coup. It seems it will not prosper.

Isn't it ironic that Erdogan is now calling upon the Turkish people to gather in the streets to protest against the coup and show their support for him, yet when the Turkish people gathered in Istanbul's Gezi Park and Taksim Square to protest against the urban development plans of these public spaces, and subsequently against much wider issues of increasing suppression of human rights, freedom of speech and the press as well as the continued encroachment of Turkey's secularism, he branded his own people as lawbreakers and terrorists. 

The situation is far from ideal but the sooner this cancerous machiavellian demagogue is gone the better.

Mike-B posted:

sjbabbey posted:

Good to know that we've got an experienced statesman in charge of the FCO at this time. Apparently Boris is "very concerned".

Joking apart,  Boris's great grandfather was Ali Kemal a political journalist who was murdered during the Turkish war of independance.   I'm guessing, but I can imagine his journalistic gibes at Erdogan's relationships with goats is a bit personal 

And don't sell Boris short,  the yaboo buffoon persona is all front.

+100.  A smart calculating individual, who genereally plays to his audience and apparent unconformity. Nice to see a politician with a bit of colour.

BigH47 posted:

Boris is looking up where Torquay is.

I bet he knows exactly where it is. He's probably already there, bashing the front of his car with a stick. 

It seems that the military coup has been unsuccessful and the civilian casualties are likely to make the military unpopular for some time to come.

I still hope that the leadership in Turkey will abandon its move to a more centrist and religiously ideological society which betrays the ideals of Kemal Ataturk, the country's founding father.

There have been several coups over the years in Turkey, almost a cultural way of changing regimes.  I hope it settles down very quickly because we are due over there on holiday in two weeks!

Mike-B posted:

Not disagreeing, but i'm not sure the knife in the back from slimeball Gove was outmaneuvering.   I'm just saying don't underestimate him, it might be avoiding the brown stuff & banana skins might prove a challenge,  time will tell.  He was my MP for a while when he did more in his short tenure than his predecessor Heseltine did in 27 years.  Ditto for London,  he gets stuff done,  but hang on it will be entertaining. 

Outmaneuvering?  I'm damn sure it wasn't.  The Gove maneuver was to give Boris a chance to run from the possibility of becoming prime minister in a scenario he didn't want to deal with, or ever expect to be a reality.  The whole Gove running for PM, and Boris not doing so, was coordinated spin........IMO

SongStream posted:

  The whole Gove running for PM, and Boris not doing so, was coordinated spin........IMO

 

...  speculative & vivid imagination SS,  you should be in politics   ...  but hey this is thread drift, we need to talk about revolting turks.

Mike-B posted:

SongStream posted:

  The whole Gove running for PM, and Boris not doing so, was coordinated spin........IMO

 

...  speculative & vivid imagination SS,  you should be in politics   ...  but hey this is thread drift, we need to talk about revolting turks.

The 'Gove Show' theme tune lyrics:  I might fall from a tall building, so Boris Johnson don't get hurt. I might leap a mighty canyon, so he can kiss an flirt.  While that smooth talker is kissin' my girl, I'm just kissin' dirt.....The Fall Guy, now that was a show.  Yes, agreed, this is serious drift from the topic, I'll shut up now.  

At first glance, the failed coup in Turkey looks like a win for democracy. Looking down the road, it is very likely that Erdogan himself will undermine democracy more by expanding his autocratic power, go after his political adversaries and shrink further the freedom of the press. The minuscule size of force which participated in the coup points to amateurism of the rebelling officers or raises the question if the whole thing was not staged.

"John Kerry said the U.S. opposed any attempt to overthrow a democratically elected leader. He said a change of government should only come through a legal, constitutional process."

I can't believe his head didn't blow up from the extreme cognitive dissonance of that statement...

Haim, Dr. Mark

Good comments guys. 

Haim Ronen posted:

At first glance, the failed coup in Turkey looks like a win for democracy. Looking down the road, it is very likely that Erdogan himself will undermine democracy more by expanding his autocratic power, go after his political adversaries and shrink further the freedom of the press. The minuscule size of force which participated in the coup points to amateurism of the rebelling officers or raises the question if the whole thing was not staged.

If not staged.....maybe "helped"?