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PLEASE LESS PARANOIA, MORE SELF-RESPECT AND CONFIDENCE
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Nov 18 2013
MEHMET OGUTCU
Our minds are still obsessed with, and conditioned by, the 1916
Sykes-Picot Agreement, officially known as the Asia Minor Agreement,
and the 1920 Treaty of Sèvres.
True, they both sought to carve up the decaying Ottoman dominions.
True, they both led to the disintegration of the 624-year long Ottoman
Empire on three continents. But still living under the heavy burden
of this period after more than 90 years is not healthy. It makes us
paranoid and we suspect that every move is a conspiracy against us,
our territorial integrity and survival.
True, we live in a treacherous geography, surrounded by neighbors
not known in the world's league of high achievers in democracy and
prosperity, but where we are located and what we possess offer immense
opportunities if well utilized and smartly harnessed.
It's difficult to believe, but we are seeing village coffeehouse-style
conversations often prevailing and being taken very seriously in
Cabinet deliberations and newspaper commentaries. If it is about the
external "dark" forces at work against us, even the dummy "information
pollution" in social media gets circulated widely without questioning.
According to such scriptwriters, these forces, whoever they are,
have never stopped undermining and plotting against us; they grow
a malicious desire to divide, discredit and eventually dismantle
our great nation. They are seen as responsible for all misdeeds and
failures, not us.
Let's take the Armenian problem, which it seems will give us a terrible
headache over the next few years due to the 2015 commemoration of
the historic calamity perpetrated in 1915 during the Ottoman wartime.
If we persist in brushing aside our emotional intelligence in dealing
with the so-called Armenian "genocide" and argue that "we did not
slaughter 1.5 million Armenians; historians give the 350,000 figure,"
it is hard to imagine how this tragic episode in both nations' psyches
could disappear, and how we can leave this deplorable era behind us
for a long overdue "reset" in our relations.
Believe it or not, the deep seated fear that holds us back from
deploying emotional intelligence is that the Armenians will one
day come back from Marseilles, Beirut, Sydney and San Francisco to
claim large portions of our eastern Anatolia, which borders today's
land-locked Armenia, if we show any signs of weakness and empathy.
The defenders of our harsh response argue that the Armenian diaspora
may even ask for us to pay billions of dollars' worth of compensation
and insurance, and that the U.N. could brand us as "the perpetrators of
this century's first genocide." There is no way can we make meaningful
progress or achieve reconciliation with such a mindset.
Another example is the "Kurdish reality." To invalidate Kurdish
aspirations, some of us maintain that the Kurds have never had a state
of their own. "Being mountain tribes and rough people, they do not
have a proper language and civilized manners." We also like repeating
that these lands were washed with the blood of our warrior martyrs. So
not even a bit of it can be left to the Kurds, the rhetoric goes.
Some sincerely believe that the Kurds are simply toys in the hands
of our enemies, as they have been throughout history, and resort to
shameless separatist terrorism to wrestle territory from us. "The
Kurds of Iraq also harbor feelings of enmity for us, and are awaiting
the most opportune time to declare independence. Then, our Kurds
will merge with them, as well as with Iran's PJAK and Syria's PYD,
to create a Greater Kurdistan, at the expense of Turks."
"The Greeks have never abandoned the Megali Idea in a bid to recapture
Constantinople and Smyrna from us." Yes, such romantic dreaming might
exist, but why do they forget that the population of both cities is
twice that of today's Greece.
"Russia, of course, still pursues Peter the Great's (or "Peter the Mad"
in our jargon) dream of reaching the warm waters of Mediterranean
through our Bosphorus. It is promoting subversive activities in
our country and the regions where we wield serious influence." They
think Putin is going to resurrect Tsarist Russia, again forgetting
that Moscow can barely even manage the territory currently under
its tutelage.
"The U.S. Congress has never ratified the Treaty of Lausanne and has
a hidden agenda to enforce one day Wilson's Fourteen Points of 1918,
governing the self-determination and independence of all the peoples
on the Anatolian soil."
"The EU, started as a Christian union, has no intention whatsoever
of letting Turkey join, despite a formal engagement of more than 50
years, because we are Muslim and a powerful country to reckon with.
They want us to disintegrate first, so that those digestible European
parts could accede to the Union by imposition of its blueprint acquis
communautaire."
"Do not be naive: Israel has a sinister plan to expand the boundaries
of the Promised Land to the Euphrates River in the north, which
God promised to the descendants of Abraham, as indicated in the
Bible. The global Jewish diaspora controls international finance,
media, universities and technology, and deploys all their mighty
power and instruments against us."
The list could go on and be expanded to match the degree of one's
suspicions.
All these in a country claiming regional superpower status, with
close to $1 trillion GDP, the second largest army in NATO (and the
biggest in the region from China to Russia and the United States
and Saudi Arabia), the largest agricultural output in Europe, a huge
cultural hinterland, a dynamic, well-educated young and entrepreneurial
population, 30 million tourists each year and still with an imperial
spine...
All these fears and paranoia are too much, even if there is some
truth in them.
We are not alone in such behavior. Middle Easterners love being
immersed in conspiracies. There are millions of people who actually,
wholeheartedly, believe that September 11 was the work of Mossad,
contrived to trick America into launching a fresh round of crusades.
Remember the vicious Taliban assault on Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani
school girl, who courageously spoke out against extremism and in
favor of educating girls? Well, many Pakistanis believe that was
an American operation - despite the Taliban's very public claiming
of responsibility.
There are those who believe that The Illuminati has planned a global
financial collapse that will make the great depression look like a
picnic. This will occur, they say, through the maneuvering of the
great banks and the world's financial institutions, through stock
and interest rate manipulations.
We have no shortage of such thinking, bordering on the paranoia. Why
don't we try to be more relaxed and have more respect and confidence
in ourselves and our capacities, enough to pre-empt and deter any
ill-intentioned designs that some might have against this country? At
the same time, why don't we try to be a respected, non-threatening,
humble "soft-power," boasting of its happy and prosperous people,
trade and investment levels, cultural diversity and richness, ethnic
harmony, natural beauties, and technological innovations?
Then, believe me; whatever threat may be posed, real or perceived,
will be minimised and will evaporate. Let's change this self-defeating
mindset. There is no need to be paranoid, instead we should focus
on our positive energies and constructive engagements both within
and abroad.
November/18/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/please-less-paranoia-more-self-respect-and-confidence.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58060&NewsCatID=396
From: Baghdasarian
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Nov 18 2013
MEHMET OGUTCU
Our minds are still obsessed with, and conditioned by, the 1916
Sykes-Picot Agreement, officially known as the Asia Minor Agreement,
and the 1920 Treaty of Sèvres.
True, they both sought to carve up the decaying Ottoman dominions.
True, they both led to the disintegration of the 624-year long Ottoman
Empire on three continents. But still living under the heavy burden
of this period after more than 90 years is not healthy. It makes us
paranoid and we suspect that every move is a conspiracy against us,
our territorial integrity and survival.
True, we live in a treacherous geography, surrounded by neighbors
not known in the world's league of high achievers in democracy and
prosperity, but where we are located and what we possess offer immense
opportunities if well utilized and smartly harnessed.
It's difficult to believe, but we are seeing village coffeehouse-style
conversations often prevailing and being taken very seriously in
Cabinet deliberations and newspaper commentaries. If it is about the
external "dark" forces at work against us, even the dummy "information
pollution" in social media gets circulated widely without questioning.
According to such scriptwriters, these forces, whoever they are,
have never stopped undermining and plotting against us; they grow
a malicious desire to divide, discredit and eventually dismantle
our great nation. They are seen as responsible for all misdeeds and
failures, not us.
Let's take the Armenian problem, which it seems will give us a terrible
headache over the next few years due to the 2015 commemoration of
the historic calamity perpetrated in 1915 during the Ottoman wartime.
If we persist in brushing aside our emotional intelligence in dealing
with the so-called Armenian "genocide" and argue that "we did not
slaughter 1.5 million Armenians; historians give the 350,000 figure,"
it is hard to imagine how this tragic episode in both nations' psyches
could disappear, and how we can leave this deplorable era behind us
for a long overdue "reset" in our relations.
Believe it or not, the deep seated fear that holds us back from
deploying emotional intelligence is that the Armenians will one
day come back from Marseilles, Beirut, Sydney and San Francisco to
claim large portions of our eastern Anatolia, which borders today's
land-locked Armenia, if we show any signs of weakness and empathy.
The defenders of our harsh response argue that the Armenian diaspora
may even ask for us to pay billions of dollars' worth of compensation
and insurance, and that the U.N. could brand us as "the perpetrators of
this century's first genocide." There is no way can we make meaningful
progress or achieve reconciliation with such a mindset.
Another example is the "Kurdish reality." To invalidate Kurdish
aspirations, some of us maintain that the Kurds have never had a state
of their own. "Being mountain tribes and rough people, they do not
have a proper language and civilized manners." We also like repeating
that these lands were washed with the blood of our warrior martyrs. So
not even a bit of it can be left to the Kurds, the rhetoric goes.
Some sincerely believe that the Kurds are simply toys in the hands
of our enemies, as they have been throughout history, and resort to
shameless separatist terrorism to wrestle territory from us. "The
Kurds of Iraq also harbor feelings of enmity for us, and are awaiting
the most opportune time to declare independence. Then, our Kurds
will merge with them, as well as with Iran's PJAK and Syria's PYD,
to create a Greater Kurdistan, at the expense of Turks."
"The Greeks have never abandoned the Megali Idea in a bid to recapture
Constantinople and Smyrna from us." Yes, such romantic dreaming might
exist, but why do they forget that the population of both cities is
twice that of today's Greece.
"Russia, of course, still pursues Peter the Great's (or "Peter the Mad"
in our jargon) dream of reaching the warm waters of Mediterranean
through our Bosphorus. It is promoting subversive activities in
our country and the regions where we wield serious influence." They
think Putin is going to resurrect Tsarist Russia, again forgetting
that Moscow can barely even manage the territory currently under
its tutelage.
"The U.S. Congress has never ratified the Treaty of Lausanne and has
a hidden agenda to enforce one day Wilson's Fourteen Points of 1918,
governing the self-determination and independence of all the peoples
on the Anatolian soil."
"The EU, started as a Christian union, has no intention whatsoever
of letting Turkey join, despite a formal engagement of more than 50
years, because we are Muslim and a powerful country to reckon with.
They want us to disintegrate first, so that those digestible European
parts could accede to the Union by imposition of its blueprint acquis
communautaire."
"Do not be naive: Israel has a sinister plan to expand the boundaries
of the Promised Land to the Euphrates River in the north, which
God promised to the descendants of Abraham, as indicated in the
Bible. The global Jewish diaspora controls international finance,
media, universities and technology, and deploys all their mighty
power and instruments against us."
The list could go on and be expanded to match the degree of one's
suspicions.
All these in a country claiming regional superpower status, with
close to $1 trillion GDP, the second largest army in NATO (and the
biggest in the region from China to Russia and the United States
and Saudi Arabia), the largest agricultural output in Europe, a huge
cultural hinterland, a dynamic, well-educated young and entrepreneurial
population, 30 million tourists each year and still with an imperial
spine...
All these fears and paranoia are too much, even if there is some
truth in them.
We are not alone in such behavior. Middle Easterners love being
immersed in conspiracies. There are millions of people who actually,
wholeheartedly, believe that September 11 was the work of Mossad,
contrived to trick America into launching a fresh round of crusades.
Remember the vicious Taliban assault on Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani
school girl, who courageously spoke out against extremism and in
favor of educating girls? Well, many Pakistanis believe that was
an American operation - despite the Taliban's very public claiming
of responsibility.
There are those who believe that The Illuminati has planned a global
financial collapse that will make the great depression look like a
picnic. This will occur, they say, through the maneuvering of the
great banks and the world's financial institutions, through stock
and interest rate manipulations.
We have no shortage of such thinking, bordering on the paranoia. Why
don't we try to be more relaxed and have more respect and confidence
in ourselves and our capacities, enough to pre-empt and deter any
ill-intentioned designs that some might have against this country? At
the same time, why don't we try to be a respected, non-threatening,
humble "soft-power," boasting of its happy and prosperous people,
trade and investment levels, cultural diversity and richness, ethnic
harmony, natural beauties, and technological innovations?
Then, believe me; whatever threat may be posed, real or perceived,
will be minimised and will evaporate. Let's change this self-defeating
mindset. There is no need to be paranoid, instead we should focus
on our positive energies and constructive engagements both within
and abroad.
November/18/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/please-less-paranoia-more-self-respect-and-confidence.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58060&NewsCatID=396
From: Baghdasarian