October 4, 2005

Turkey: Back to the Future?

By Andrew G. Bostom
[Part 1 appears today; Parts 2 and 3 will appear later this week] Once again, Turks are storming the heart of Europe. This time, it is not by the sword, but rather in seeking to join the European Union (EU). Once inside the gates, they will gain access to the great cities, wealth, and power of their ancient rivals. Smoothing the way for incorporation of the former would—be conqueror into borderless Europe is an errant belief that Ottoman Turkey was a tolerant multi—cultural civilization. Nothing could be further from the truth. Recently, security analyst Frank Gaffney wrote a courageous essay, featured in the Washington Times , urging that Turkey's bid to join the EU be rejected. Gaffney highlighted the Islamic Shari'a—based religious revival under the current Erdogan regime as the keystone to his cogent argument. Despite Gaffney's legitimate concerns regarding the current Erdogan government, he reiterates a common, politically—correct canard which ignores the...(Read Full Article)