[Pope Francis Remembers the Armenian Genocide]
"An evil front is being formed before us...Now the pope has joined it and these plots," Davutoglu said.
He said Turkey was willing to confront its history, but added: "We won't allow our nation to be insulted through history, we won't allow Turkey to be blackmailed through historic disputes."
13 comments
@ Indicible
Yes, cause Turkey's government = all Islam, and non-islamist government NEVER EVER lie.
Less of the cheap bigotry thanks.
@Warren: To be fair to Indicible, the current Turkish government is characterized as a "moderate Islamist" party. And the massacre was driven by religion as much as by ethnicity: Muslim Turks against Christian Armenians, in part because the Turks feared (without any serious justification) an Armenian uprising in support of a Russian invasion. It was 1915 after all; the Russians and Turks were on opposite sides of World War I, and there were other attempts to stir up minority revolts against Ottoman rule. That said, the current denialism is largely a function of Turkish nationalism rather than any religious feeling per se.
My point was, for people who claim to have the moral high ground, they still happily endorse lies and slaughter.
The current Turkish government is engaged in an effort to islamize society and to achieve that glorify the Ottomans, who committed that genocide.
It is, IMO, a convergence of raison d'Etat and islamism. The raison d'Etat is still as disgusting as it was 100 years ago, but now, it is even tinged with some islamism.
@ Indicible
Yeah, still bigotry. The equivilent of saying that if a black murders someone its another example of blacks inherent violence. It ignores compleatly that being prone to murder is not a consequence of being black, but a consequence of being human (an 'evil' human).
What is it about Islam in particular that leads you to conclude that lying about history is a characteristic of Islamic movements? Is it your case that in our history other, non-islamic movements dont tell lies to avoid or obscure or explain away uncomfortable historical truths? I doubt you would be that stupid.
Basically, this is an example of confirmation bias. In the context you use it its a common prop of racisim, and the more you try to explain it away, the harder its going to be to admit you were wrong and hopefully improve yourself.
Or, just ignore me and wallow in your bigotry - as my mate Jesus is purported to have said, you'll find that wide gate much easier to pass through.
"What is it about Islam in particular that leads you to conclude that lying about history is a characteristic of Islamic movements?"
Not particular to Islamic movements, but a staple of fundamentalist movements, that's all.
I still groan every time I hear about the christian roots of Europe (which has been christian for 1500 years and pagan for millenia before that, and yet, we never hear about pagan roots...).
I still shake my head every time I hear about the christian USA and so on.
And I find it rather distressing to hear orthodox Jews claim the Earth was created 6000 years ago (heard it myself, during a seminar in bioethics, no less).
So, is it bigotry? What constitutes bigotry, for you?
Here's a simple solution that can make you feel good about being Turkish: it was the Ottomans who massacred people in a fit of anger at losing WW1, and it was Ataturk who put the old regime out of its misery and restore the land to a dignified, non-mass murdering prison of nations. Every nation has criminals, and every nation will have its hero. Condemn your own criminals to show you stand with the hero.
Why doesn't the Turkish Government just admit that they did a genocide? Folks who own up to their past screw-ups rather than covering them up receive a lot more respect from others.
Either they're really stupid, they don't like respect or they're not sorry for killing a bunch of Armenians.
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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