Good 'ol Osama Bin Laden laughed his arse off as Hibijibi wrote:

> I'm not sure what "yes" you're referring to, but I don't believe there is a
> general perception in the U.S. that Turkey has been a helpful or willing
> ally in the Iraq conflict.  Turkey has the second largest military force in
> NATO, with a full-scale conflict occuring on your border, at the same time
> suffering viscious terrorist attacks from Muslim extremists in recent days
> and you don't want to get involved.  Hello?

Hello? HELLO? Exactly how clueless can you be? Why should any Turk give 
a damn if the average sepponian in the street (90%+ of whom couldn't 
locate Turkey on a map even if their thanksgiving face-stuffing depended 
on it) thinks Turkey hasn't bent over and been shafted far enough by 
your lot? Why should any Turkish politician care about anything other 
than the preferences and opinions of Turkish voters?

As was the case in February, you are still making the same incorrect 
assumptions.
http://tinyurl.com/xc6x

1) No nation in the NATO alliance was attacked by Iraq. No NATO member 
is under any obligation whatsoever to assist the US with unilateral 
invasions. All of the NATO countries gave and continue to give full 
assistance in fighting Al Queda (remember them?) Iraq's dictatorship was 
contained, and no threat to anyone outside its borders. There was no 
risk from NBC weapons. Put simply, the US fuckup in Iraq has nothing to 
do with NATO.

2) Full-scale conflict? Turkey's advice (along with most of the NATO 
membership) was quite simple - DO NOT invade Iraq. If your government 
had listened, your soldiers would not be in the shit that they are in 
now. The US invaded a place without the reason, support or consultation 
required by NATO, and overestimated the limitations of US military 
power. Instead of trying to drag allies into the quagmire, the US should 
be trying to find a way out. Best solution? Probably to find and 
establish a strong secular dictator.

3) terrorist attacks from Muslim extremists? not wanting to get 
involved? In case you aren't aware, Turkey has a long history of 
fighting extremists (militarily and politically) within its borders, all 
the more reason why your government should have *shut up and listened*. 
The bombs this past week were not detonated by Saddam Hussein's forces. 
Sending Turkish security forces into Iraq is not going to help protect 
Turkish citizens trying to go about their day to day lives.

The long and the short of it is that President Bush should have spent 
less time watching baseball, and a little bit of time reading Marguerite 
Yourcenar's Memoirs of Hadrian.


-- 
"Beyond the Euphrates began for us the land of mirage and danger, the 
sands where one helplessly sank, and the roads which ended in nothing. 
The slightest reversal would have resulted in a jolt to our prestige 
giving rise to all kinds of catastrophe; the problem was not only to 
conquer but to conquer again and again, perpetually; our forces would be 
drained off in the attempt." - Emperor Hadrian AD 117-138