[Excellent article on recent and historic developments in Turkey… thanx Asli] NY Times: ISTANBUL — The detention of top military officers in Turkey last week was nothing less than a quiet piece of history. The military, long considered untouchable in Turkey, was pushed from its political pedestal with startling finality. The moment, years in the making, was more whimper than bang. But it still raises an existential question for this NATO member: What sort of country will Turkey be? The question goes to the very heart of modern Turkey, a Muslim democracy whose military was a potent force in the country’s political life for most of its 86-year history. Its strictly secular ideology permeated all aspects of public life, including the education system, the judiciary and the bureaucracy. The military, long considered the ultimate guardian of that secularism, has overthrown elected governments to protect it. Not only has the military been politically defanged, but it has also proved unable or unwilling to fight back. Dozens of officers were detained last week, and several senior ones were arrested. Top military leaders met and managed to produce only a brief statement, never mind a coup.
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“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge.”
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The question of whether the gasoline sanctions on Iran would be effective or not is really not the point. The proponents of sanctions don’t care about that, really. To them, sanctions — whether effective or not by themselves — are really just an incremental step towards their ultimate goal, which is a war on Iran to suit Israel. As long as the US is imposing sanctions on Iran, they’re not really engaging or talking to Iran — which suits these Iran-hawks just fine because the last thing the hawks want to see is Iran and the US resolving their differences. And more importantly, as they force the Obama administration down the sanctions path step by step, their boxing-in the administration into a coercive, aggressive policy on Iran which ultimately will end in an all-out war.
For example, lets start with the gas sanctions. Everyone knows that they will be ineffective, so the next step will consist of the Iran-hawks raising a clamour about the need to “tighten” the sanctions. This will inevitably lead to a maritime blockade and perhaps even interception of shipping to Iran. And once that happens, its only a matter of time before we get to “pin point strikes” and sinking of ships etc — in other wars, a shooting war, the real desire of the Iran hawks. By then, Obama will not be able to reverse the course (he probably can’t do so even now) and another war will be a fait accompli.