So @bobknight33,

@moonsammy asked you a few questions. I'm not sure if you missed the request or if you're just sitting around pulling your pud yelling "COME ON FUNNY FEELING!!

I'm interested to see just what you think about the issues he's asking you rather than just seeing you jump around with your pom poms in your cheerleader outfit.

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Bob, what specifically has Trump been doing well, that you'd like to see more of? Actual specifics please, not vagaries. Are you a big fan of the 2017 tax reforms? The boondoggle border wall that's been paid for by redirecting funds meant for the military, and definitely NOT by Mexico? Breaking faith with our historic allies while promoting authoritarians like Kim, Putin, and Erdogan? I really am honestly curious: what has Trump done, specifically, that you feel has been a positive for the US?
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The only points he made were "keep America great" and "don't replace a coach when you're winning superbowls." Bob, what specifically has Trump been doing well, that you'd like to see more of? Actual specifics please, not vagaries. Are you a big fan of the 2017 tax reforms? The boondoggle border wall that's been paid for by redirecting funds meant for the military, and definitely NOT by Mexico? Breaking faith with our historic allies while promoting authoritarians like Kim, Putin, and Erdogan? I really am honestly curious: what has Trump done, specifically, that you feel has been a positive for the US?

on Erdogan's Referendum

They're not gonna vote in favour of Brexit! - Bam!
They're not gonna vote in favour of Trump! - Bam!
They're not gonna vote in favour of Erdogan! - Bam!

And the nomenklatura is still either pretending to not know how much their policies have hurt the plebs, or they actually don't know, or they simply don't give a shit. No matter, result's the same.

France's up next weekend. The darling of the neoliberal elite, Macron, vs the nationalist Le Pen, with outsider chances for our boy Mélenchon.

Better strap in tight, we're in for a wild ride.

Careful Jan, or you'll get sued again!
Erdogan might find a fellow Avenger.

Again democracy cant decide the death penalty, abortions, taxes, religion, defense spending and all the other puny details. Democracy can choose leaders, agendas and assign responsibility.

Noocracy is just a new name for despotism, you let inteligent people have their way, the first thing they do is take care of themselves. Stupid people must have a fair representation. Experiments are being conducted to just let them think they have a fair representation, but I am afraid they may not be that stupid. I mean I hope they (we) are not.

Democracy is fairly simple and straightforward - either there is a way to change the ruler or there is not. Putin cant lose. Erdogan cant lose. Chinese communist party cant lose. Castro cant lose. Not democracy. Obviously the details of implementation are very nuanced, like if there are only two parties is that democracy? Etc.

Basically if the ruler makes it impossible for himself to be deposed peacefully democracy ends.

So let us assume some artificial system to pick perfect leaders could be devised. They would have no responsibility (after all they are the best possible leader) no compassion (everyone else is stupid) and no motivation (Im no. 1 so why try harder). Add a secret police and Stalinist Russia is born.

The ignorant herd is painfully hit and miss, but so is the stock market. This is still preferable to any dictator, even a clever one.

Its not about the complexity of the explanation. Its the fewest assumptions required that matter. Frankly I dont have enough info about Turkey to be an expert.

However what Erdogan and Yldirim say publicly is enough to make your head spin.

Historically the military in Turkey knows how to coup, and does so regularly to support a secular state. Erdogan is a danger to secularism, so a coup would kind of be expected, however an anti-Erdogan religious leader is blamed officially.

All the violence was for TV only, few casualties, no VIP casualties, not much infrastructure damage, but a big hole in the Parliament building. A few thousand people took part, mostly military, taking orders from a small group of commanders. Disproportionately large scale repressions result against tens of thousands of people who might have done no more than made a facebook comment against Erdogan.

Yldirims "dont ask for proof, when 9/11 happened no-one asked for proof either" line of reasoning was a clincher for me.

Looks staged from here. Incompetence would have to have been legendary and suicidal. CIA/Putin is conspiracy theory.
Are the generals now in Greece the stagers? That would be funny (except for the hundreds dead and injured, thousands in jail and tens of thousands out of jobs and careers).

You might be right about the coup being a deception, but I also think that that's the opposite of Occam's razor. Saying that Erdogan ordered / incited / allowed the coup in order to facilitate greater dictatorial authority for himself is a more complex explanation than saying it's a poorly executed military coup. The world has seen failed coups before, so it's not an impossibility.

The least complex explanation would be that it was a poorly executed, earnest coup attempt. The second least complex explanation would be that it was a poorly executed coup attempt that Erdogan allowed to happen because he was confident that it would play into his hands. The third least complex explanation is that it was a poorly executed coup attempt funded by the CIA to undermine a potential Putin ally? http://www.economist.com/news/europe/21702337-turkish-media-and-even-government-officials-accuse-america-being-plot-after

"we dont know whos behind the plot" - well then youre not really explaining it, are you?

Fishy plot. Cui bono? Occams razor says Erdogan organized it.

It's hard to have an opinion on how this ought to work out. On the one hand, Erdogan is shady. On the other hand, coup d'etats rarely end up well.

Probably the third option is the best. Whatever that is.

SPIEGEL reveals that the German foreign intelligence agency is spying on Turkey, big time.

Meanwhile, our government considers providing aid to the Kurdish forces in northern Iraq, including weapons. And our Foreign Minister, over the course of this discussion, referred to Kurdistan as a source of stability in the area.

Neither one of those two pieces of information is of particular interest, but the combination indicates a shift in the relationship with Turkey. Erdogan's gonna be pissed, especially if the EU provides support to the PKK through Kurdistan.

I foresee fun times ahead.

25 tweeters arrested-"Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that Twitter was a "menace" being used to spread "lies"."-BBC

While I disagree on Turkish own stances with regards to the Armenian genocide, and Turkey's increased trade with Israel following Erdogan's election. What happened at Davos was simply shameful and I agree with his walkout. They don't let him speak, they didn't question Shimon Peres at all. Fucking lunacy.

The latest on this story:

Turkey to call general election:

The AK party is still backing Abdullah Gul, Turkey's foreign minister, as its presidential candidate [AFP]. Turkey's parliamentary constitutional committee has recommended that general elections be brought forward from November to July. The electoral board made the decision on Wednesday after Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, requested that general elections be held to end a political deadlock over the election of a new president. The decision still needs to be approved by parliament which is likely to meet on Thursday to discuss the proposal. Erdogan had asked for elections to be held on June 24, but the committee settled instead on July 22. Senior members of the AK party had called for national elections to be brought forward from November to June 24 in order to resolve a stand-off with the country's military. "Bringing forward the general election will reduce uncertainty," Bulent Arinc, a senior AK Party member and parliamentary speaker, told a news conference on Wednesday. "[The decision] will meet our people's expectation for trust and stability." The AKP appeared to be hoping that its success in promoting economic growth and pushing down inflation would see it returned to power with a renewed and strengthened mandate. Erdogan also said that he was considering changing the constitution to enable the president to be elected directly by a popular vote.

Presidential elections:

Also on Wednesday, Turkey's parliament ratified a timetable for electing a president that was put forward by the country's ruling Justice and Development party (AK party). MPs from the 550-seat parliament will vote on Sunday in the first of four rounds of voting that will culminate in the election of a new president, parliament ruled on Wednesday. The decision to hold a re-run of the first round of voting came a day after the Constitutional Court ruled that a similar vote held last week was invalid because not enough members of parliament had been present. Senior members of the army threatened on Friday to intervene in politics if the AK party moved to dismantle or weaken the country's secular constitution.

Constitutional crisis:

Parliament held the first of four rounds of vote to elect a new president last Friday.
Abdullah Gul, the AK party candidate, won the largest share of the vote but failed to achieve the required quorum after opposition parties boycotted the vote and failed to put forward their own candidate. The opposition parties - mainly composed of secularist, pro-army parties - then argued that the vote was invalid and appealed to the country's constitutional court to consider ordering a re-run. On Tuesday, the court ruled in the favour of the opposition parties and said that the vote must be repeated."

(Al-Jazeera 3/5/2007)

Some breaking news on this story - from al-Jazeera (1/5/2007):

:Court rules Turkish poll invalid:

Turkey's Constitutional Court has declared the first round of the country's presidential election invalid. The selection of Abdullah Gul by the ruling AK party as its presidential candidate has provoked street protests and the deepening of a political crisis in the country that is bidding for EU membership. Gul was voted in as candidate by parliament on Friday, but his win was questioned by secularist parliamentarians. The court upheld an appeal from the secularist opposition on Tuesday. The opposition wants to stop the ruling that makes Gul, who is the present foreign minister and has Islamist roots, the head of state. Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, could now propose another candidate for the job."