Fareed Zakaria is wrong on Turkey

Fareed Zakaria and I are good friends.. ideologically. I love his book, The Post-American World, which you can (and should) purchase - from Amazon dot com for a heavily discounted price (40% off). As I was saying, he is one of the few political minds that appears on TV that actually makes sense most of the time and uses facts to justify his point, something sorely missed from most other commentators and pundits.

However.. he is just plain wrong about Turkey. Every time he gets the chance to talk about Turkey he does.. and he keeps complimenting them and showering them with his praises. I find all these adulation misplaced.

In his most recent talk on this subject he touts the Turkish Supreme Court ruling that disallows the banning of the ruling party based on their adherence to a religion. (Which I agree is good) Then he goes on about how all the Middle East could really "learn" from the "only Islamic liberal democracy." This is where he is exactly wrong.

Turkey, like France, are too secular to be democracies. Let me explain, just like Christianity or Islam can affect a democracy, state or society so can ultra-secularism. The cult of ultra-secularism treats religion not as an integral part of people's lives but as a threat to liberty. Now, there are some religious types who see the same of secularism but in a true democracy all people must be protected from both. Both the religious and secular wish to influence others with their way of seeing the world and it is the role of a true liberal democracy (of which Zakaria refers) to allow both options to exist and not threaten the other. Neither side should over-power the other without the protections of the State and both view-points should exist within the marketplace of ideologies that exist within these liberal States.

Therefore, it should not be the place of the governments of France or Turkey to allow or disallow any amount of religiosity on the part of an individual or group either by overt or covert means. There is nothing that is inherently anti-French or anti-Turkish in wearing a scarf, yarmulke, or cross. Both countries especially Turkey are guilty of betraying their pledges to liberalism when they take secularism to an extreme where it infringes on the liberties of people to express their beliefs. This is a problem in the Western World that is continuing to create problems as immigration and the free flow of information change the structure and nature of societies throughout the world. Just as Religious Terrorists throughout the world strike out against secular targets, so does the ultra-secularists strike against any overt sign of religion.

Fareed Zakaria, my friend, now is the most important time for liberal democracies to exist in their truest form so that they may be a model of tolerance and peace between parties in the face of extremism and totalism.

Strong Moderate

Please Feel Free to Share Your Opinions!!


Links:

The Post-American World - Fareed Zakaria -- Amazon.com

Zakaria: Islamic world should learn from Turkey court ruling -- CNN.com

Sen Arlen Specter (R-PA) has Cancer Again

In some very saddening news, we have learned that Senator Specter of Pennsylvania and a true leader on the Judiciary Committee has been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Disease again. He was first diagnosed with this cancer of the lymphatic system in 2005.

Sen. Specter recently published his autobiographical book, "Never Give In: Battling Cancer in the Senate", about his battle with the disease which he first was aware of having in 2005. In the book he describes his battles as friends and enemies began to treat him differently and famously said that President Bush treated him like he was "contagious".

He has stated that he will continue to serve Pennsylvania in the Senate and will go through an intense 12 weeks of chemotherapy. Sen. Specter has also had other medical issues in the past which he has overcome and recovered from fully, such as two cardiac arrests and other heart problems.

We wish him good luck and a speedy path to recovery.

Other Links on this story:

Official Statement - Sen. Specter's Senate Office
Arlen Specter's Hodgkin's disease returns - CNN
Pa. Sen. Arlen Specter diagnosed again with cancer - AP

Hagel's New Book: [[America: Our Next Chapter: Tough Questions, Straight Answers]]

Leave it to an active Senator to write a book in which he takes no prisoners but doing just that is definitely one of the strengths of maverick Senator Hagel. His new book "America: Our Next Chapter: Tough Questions, Straight Answers" hits stores on March 25th and will be in Nebraska a few days later to sign books.

This book will certainly be exciting if for just the thrill of reading what the maverick Republican is going to say about the Bush Administration, Iraq War, and how he sees the War on Terror(ism) going into the future. He comments on what he considers to be the true blunder of the Iraq War and why Washington's polarization is leading towards the creation of a new (and possibly viable) third party.

I know a lot of NE republicans may not like the guy for his views on those things but no one can call him a coward. Sen. Hagel is the kind of person who doesn't mask his words or play a game of semantics.. he says it like it is, and in that sense should has the original Straight Talk Express stashed away somewhere. Speaking of of which, after much whining about the lack of a clear endorsement in the Presidential race from Hagel, there are a few mentions of them (outside of that context) in his book. Sen. Hagel refers to Sen. Obama once in a chapter about the importance of dealing with nations directly when there is a crisis, however the mention is only connected to a bill Hagel and Obama co-authored strengthening the security of nuclear plants and fuels. As for Sen. McCain he gets heaps of praise in a larger section of his book dedicated to a vision of independent leadership and vision. (Also mentioned in that section is his colleague and former opponent in his victorious 1996 election, Sen. Ben Nelson (D) )

I am definitely going out to buy this book the first minute I can and think that anyone (no matter their political ideology) could benefit from reading it. The price is about 26 dollars and is available at a local bookstore near you or you can buy it at Amazon for about 17 dollars (and if you buy another 8 dollars worth of stuff shipping is free).

Amazon Listing