We Don’t Have to Be the Grocer of the Middle East The period between 1718 and 1730, which includes the revolt of Patrona Halil, is called the Tulip Age in the history books. What was outstanding about this period was the existence and development of an extraordinary culture of the tulip in Istanbul. During this period, when Europe was still in the Middle Ages, the Ottomans had transformed the tulip into a unique treasure trove of culture with its poems, songs and dances. There is no other example on earth in which such a wealthy economic sector and rich culture developed around a single flower. The tulip is no ordinary flower. Its shape contains the divine secrets of mysticism; its leaves hide the secrets of a period; and its red color bears the cry of the pleasures that were beheaded. The secret contradiction of Turkey’s history is hidden in the tan mark at the bottom of its leaves. But we underestimated the value of the tulip in these lands that loved and exalted it so highly. We lost it to the Dutch. Now Holland exports tulips all over the world and holds international tulip festivals. It makes you want to ask, “O Hollanders, have you ever had a Tulip Age? Have you ever written poems and songs about the tulip? Have you ever called your daughters “Tulip”? Have you ever beheaded grand viziers who cultivated tulips? Have there been times when you plundered tulip gardens, when you were afraid of cultivating tulips? Do you really know the tulip, the love of the tulip, the cry of the tulip?” It was we who did all of this: we — the gentle, noble, angry, capricious and blooded children of these lands. We loved the tulip very much, and we killed it as we killed many other things we loved. Every year in April and June, more than 1 million tourists travel to Holland’s tulip center, Kokinhof, to look at tulips. This is tulip tourism, which brings in an income of millions of dollars. Today, the tulip is the Dutch identity. I went to a place in Amsterdam where tulips are sold at auction. Flowers from all over the world flow into an area of 7,000 square meters. Separate auctions are held in tens of halls. Flowers coming from Turkey, too, are worked on and resold to Turkey at very high prices. They cultivate their flowers in greenhouses. There is incredible organization. This tiny country gets its highest revenue from agriculture. Cultivated areas constitute 26 percent of the country. But the word “tulip” in Western languages as well as the bulb itself came from Turkey. “Tulbendi Turcica” means Turkish muslin. The Dutch word “tulip” was derived from its association with the Turkish turban. We destroyed an enormous culture, and they claimed ownership of it. We talk about it as the age of enjoyment and pleasure in our history books. At a time when Holland didn’t know anything about tourism, the Ottomans used to organize tulip festivals in palace gardens, set up tables selling tulip bulbs and silk to people coming to Istanbul from all over the world. Istanbul was then the capital of the unnamed tulip festival. Now I dream of a “Tulip Renaissance” in the 21st century. We will orient tulip tourism towards Istanbul. We will give these admiring tourists books in every language explaining that the tulip is the “flower on which God reflected” according to the mystics. We will translate Nedim and other poets of this age. We will export to every place possible those beautiful tulip vases displaying the fine taste of Ottoman architecture. Then we will conclude the tulip festival with a tulip garden drawn by lasers in the sky. A symphony orchestra will play that immortal composition based on the poem by Nedim: “It’s the time of festival. Tulip gardens are cheerful because of it.” We can tell this secret again if we estimate the value of our own culture and open our hearts to the tulip once again. Though Ottoman tulips have vanished genetically, let’s create new Turkish tulips. The businessman who doesn’t know his own culture cannot win over the world and production. Cultural preferences and values are the basis of the national identity and the source of our strong and weak points in economic terms. We can create a trademark only with our culture. And to be able to make a synthesis of this, we must stop being narrow-minded.

One can’t but ponder the significance of the 550th anniversary of Istanbul’s conquest within the context of globalization. I wonder whether the introverted and constrictive policies of today’s politics are sufficient to understand Mehmet the Conqueror. The great Mehmet the Conqueror, who conquered Constantinople without compromising the West-East complex, was in pursuit of enormous dreams. His dreams determined his policies and expansion. The Conqueror neither touched the temples of the city that he conquered nor altered the lifestyle of the people. His master Aksemsettin prayed in the garden of the Hagiasofia and the majesty of Hagiasofia was sheltered in his shadow literally. The Turks, who could not have celebrated the conquest of Istanbul with much pride, lost their dreams, along with all their values, in the miserable introversion of leftist-rightist discrimination. I wonder if Fatih was the last bastion of the Conquest ideal. It is impossible to talk about dreams in this country if the only ideals are either the establishment of the turban in the public field or the unique dream to keep the turban out of that field. Those who are party to this fruitless dispute would do well to remember that their forefather, Fatih, gave the Kalanderi dervishes a huge dervish lodge in good faith. The Great Sultan of the Conquest protected these Heteredox dervishes, who wore earrings and navel-rings, shaved their hair, beards and eyebrows and went naked from the waist up. This great sultan, who acknowledged the splendid wealth of diversity, also protected an old church, known today as the Zeyrek Mosque. Can you tell me who would love Mehmet the Conqueror if he were alive today? With today’s narrow-minded policies and views, who would have loved this giant? The Ottoman era’s withdrawal and decline over a 300-year period left Republican history with depressive fears. We could not honor our nation state with a modern conquest. We were unable to carry a scientific, cultural, artistic or fashion conquest beyond our borders. We have forgotten our culture and tradition of conquering hearts. Go to Miniaturk and see it: The Ahrida Synagogue, established by the Jews from Ohri, pays tribute from the 15th century; numerous Sinan artifacts such as the Haseki Hurrem Bath of Sinan the Architect were used as a depot for years during the Republican period as many Sinan masterpieces in our lap. The artifacts, crafted in the wide bosom of Ottoman geography, are fluttering like our dreams’ flag. If we cannot create a single architectural wonder to advance our civilization in the Republican period, it is because we have been unable to dream beyond our borders. The barren state of our culture is reflected in our cities and architecture. Designs of the past fifty years are squatter camps of our sterile dreams. Why do fashion, art and cultural conquests elude us? Why do some fear a drought of foreign capital? While Polish leaders attracted $13 billion in foreign capital to their countries and became military leaders of the Iraqi administration, did Polish leaders happen to divide Poland? It is necessary to reflect on the reasons why the dreams of those leaders – who don’t love their countries – brought prosperity to their countries in such a short time. Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Russia were countries we used to curl our lips at. And they had also admired us. We were the advanced out-post of the West. We were a symbol for the West. We were a launching pad to the West. Now, our businessmen flock there; everybody is fleeing from Ankara, which has turned into an apple that has been sapped. The big states, which represent globalization and want to break up nation states, don’t have the power to change this situation. They can only split imaginary things and move on. One needs to ask oneself why those fearing the imaginary don’t try to realize reality. I spoke to a university student in Petersburg. He said young people are against globalization. The 22-year-old added: “It’s hollow, like everything in fashion!” Antagonism and the building of walls don’t stop the youth. Despite the multi-polar world theory being developed by Primakov, Russia shakes hands with Bush today and agrees with him on many issues. International powers yield in the presence of power. This power, whether it is harsh or soft, does not bring equal rights or alleviate all the fears of those countries. Speaking without looking at the world is like giving a lecture inside one’s head.

I don’t think that we can escape from the reality of interrogating ourselves when we look at the situation that our border neighbors were in ten years ago. What conditions were the Bulgarian, Greek and Russian economic and political structures ten years ago? Those who were once far behind us have now developed beyond our administration, which is focused on the power of “self.” Kazakhstan was a place struggling for a new identity ten years ago. In a country of 14 million people, food was basic, consisting of meat, potatoes and cabbage. Clothing was scarce. There were no roads, no infrastructure. At that time, no one even believed that Kazakhstan could become its own country. Believing that he had been exiled, the first Turkish ambassador bought a ruin of a building. Our member of the foreign ministry, blind to future possibilities, settled in that wreck of a building as if it deserved the name of Turkey. Now, a Turkish flag is waving on top of such a ragged building and Kazakhstan is developing. Upon reflection, this building with its unkempt yard may be a correct choice, as it shows our bleeding heart. Luckily, in those difficult days, our people had run to Kazakhstan in order to make investments, not being as pessimistic as our ambassadors. Additionally, we now have 28 schools in Kazakhstan, a country considered crucially important by all the western countries. We have two universities there as well. Everybody is literate there, with many people graduating with double diplomas. There are 110 universities in a country of 14-million. These are Egyptian, German, English-Kazakh and American-Kazakh universities. Opening a university depends on many criteria. There is no lecturer problem. You can’t open a university unless there are 140 books per student and unless you allot a nine square-meter-place per student. The quality of the state universities is very good, Al-Farabi University being one such school. The president of Suleyman Demirel University is a very interesting mathematician, Askar Cumadullayev, and it was upon his name that chairs were opened in the western universities. Askar Cumadullayev talked about his ancestor Mustafa Cokay. He [Cumadullayev] spoke of how the Russians forced the Kazakh people to abandon their language, which had been put down as a peasant language. I said, “I know that a language is the fatherland of a person.” During a recent symposium on cooperative cultures in the 21st century, a symposium attended by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and coinciding with the timing of the European Security and Cooperation Organization (AGIT) conference, the audience gave a shower of applause when Kazakh intellectuals were on the podium. Intellectuals are public heroes here in Kazakhstan. Kyrgyz Aytmatov was also honored by applause. While the parliamentarians participating in the AGIT conference spoke one or two eastern languages, the Turks were nailed down to speaking only in English. And while the United States ambassador spoke Russian in his opening address and later spoke in the Kazakh language during discussions, the Turkish foreign ministry exhibited no such command of eastern languages. Though my grandmother, grandfather and father’s mother spoke three or four languages, my mother’s generation spoke only Turkish. What a singular style of life! Fifty-two percent of the population in Kazakhstan, a country comprised of people from 130 nations, is Kazak, 30 percent is Russian and the larger remaining nationalities are German, Korean, Ukrainian, Muslim Chinese known as Dungan, Yezidi Kurds, Armenians and other Turkish peoples. The Kazakh People have developed a cooperative culture with a mature aesthetic taste, being fond of music and dance. Women are involved in every field of life. The Kazakh woman is the fundamental pillar of the country, with her music, dance, art and hard work. There are three lady ministers as well as one female national education minister in the Kazakh Parliament. Minister of Education Shamsha Berkimbayeva said, “Our closest friends are the Turkish people who were here in our most difficult days.” She continually praises the schools opened by Turkey. Also, she said that she never misses the TV series Deliyurek, adding that she enjoys Alabora a great deal. They are fond of the Turkish TV series here. I wish we could turn it into a cultural export material, as the entire Turkish world, the Middle East and even North Africa buys such things. Two Kazakh girls formed a duo, playing Spanish melodies and using the dombra as a guitar, and won an award in Europe in this year. There are lots of musicians who have succeeded in integrating western forms into their own cultures. Young people are proud of their cultures. However, the Kazakh language is a new learned language. I don’t suppose as long as the Kyryl alphabet exists, the effect of Russian culture will decrease. If the language is your homeland, the alphabet is the car taking you to the homeland. It should be said that there are many people who were defeated under the old collapsed system. In their speeches, intellectuals were very angry at the concept that presented the making money as the Kaaba of everything, under the name of free market economy. The widest avenues are full of casinos, discotheques and bars. Gambling and drinking are the most prevalent addictions. Everybody feels a desire to get rich quick. Immediately. I knocked on the door of a house together with my friends as an unexpected guest in an Armenian neighborhood. I experienced unbelievable hospitality. When there is no ideological poisoning, the human heart is a very soft corner. We drank mint tea and ate cherries and fruits from its garden. We were reminded of Yunus, who said: “72 nations are the same for us.”

When the Iraq issue was discussed during the Erdogan-Clinton meeting, Prime Minister [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan stated that he wants the Turkish Armed Forces to be assigned to a certain region in Iraq under the command of Turkish commanders and that his government affirmatively considers sending troops.

Demanding a specific region, the prime minister said we want to provide health, educational and infrastructural services. The prime minister, who wants to take modern Turkey’s interests to Iraq, aims at establishing the neccesary social infrastructure. This attitude will mean exporting the Turkish model and it is important regarding our relations with the European Union [EU]. This is because EU officials recently stated the reason they don’t want to accept Turkey into their fold as follows: “This thing has nothing to do with religion, you are too slow concerning cultural rights. For example, women’s rights and the state of women is too underdeveloped in comparison with ours.” It is worth being closely followed by the EU if we are to prove ourselves as a model and have a part to play in a pilot region in Iraq. Europe will be interested in Turkey’s capability of being a model in the region as well. In spite of everything, Turkey’s benefits from democracy and modern life are enormous. Iraqi television channels broadcast Turkish films, concerts and serials just as Iran has been doing for years. Many people know that the entertainment world means fun, and so the ‘Televole’ program is very popular there. The socialization of Iraq will be tantamount to the civilization of that country. Democracy could come when life returns to normalcy. The greatest danger in Iraq is the ‘Shiite bigotry.’ This bigotry which aims at making women invisible, won’t welcome the Turkish model. This is an important point in which a great deal of attention must be given. As Ferai Tinc wrote yesterday, the U.S. is not stuck in the Iraq quagmire, on the contrary, it has established a central authority. It only experiences difficulty in investing billions of dollars and will demand money when it speaks at the United Nations. As part of the solidarity, if Turkey undertakes the social infrastructural, cultural and entertainment responsibilities there, then it can start to work on healing the people’s souls. It will contribute to the future of the Iraqi people who will like to integrate with a modern world. The Iraqi people will like to heal the wounds and integrate with the [civilized] world. Dealing with a dictatorial regime for years, the Iraqi people are the generations who have watched Turkish movies, admired Turkan Soray or ridden the horse with Malkocoglu. Turkey has to make its brave and bold presence in the region felt. Instead of the ‘let’s not get involved in anything’ foreign policy, which has been pursued for years, let’s share the accumulation of our 700-year experience with the Iraqi people. We can ensure togetherness instead of clashes and contradictions. Until now, our foreign policies have alienated us from our neighbors. Any success that is achieved by Turkey in Iraq will increase its role and influence in the region. And this model will become an example for Europe as well. Turkey, which is in a position of representing modern life and human rights in the region, will also get the needed acceleration within and its confidence will increase. This is not only a social issue, it is also a political task. It is a necessity of a natural process. This is the EU and Western perspective though. September 22, 2003

What is Turkey going to do if [President George W.] Bush is defeated in next year’s elections, and if the new president decides to withdraw from Iraq? If Bush wins the elections and announces to the entire world that he is going to stay in the Middle East with his new projects, what is Turkey going to do then?

In the strategic games, every prediction and plan made from possibilities are being used in brain storming. Turkey needs to plan beforehand, for every possibility, including what kind of situation it might fall into. In this matter, the caravan won’t hit the road but will only get robbed, so to speak. In the Middle East three major streams have engaged in hot competitions: Vahabism, Shiitism, the modernized Sunni tradition and the Turk Islam understanding that emanated from the Ottoman civilization and culture. The U.S. sees Vahabism today as a swamp where terrorism is being bred. Vahabism was also the most aggressive and reactionary stream during the Ottoman period. Their attacks on Turks and on the Turkish Islamic faith were documented in newspapers in the 1800s. There is no place for global tolerance in Vahabism, and it will not even call a Muslim who is not liked by the sect a Muslim. This was said me a lot in the region. Shiitism adopts a spreading policy and a politicized stream. that controls an expansion policy in the Middle East. It has won many enemies with the politics of Khomeini in Iran. The Turk Islam understanding did not even take part in the Middle East stage, forget about the world scene. Turkey’s bashfulness that reminds us of a new bride, who cannot dance with the excuse that the place is too narrow for dancing, has turned into a meaningless concept. The Turk Islam understanding, which even the West is aware of and even America talks about, is still ’something our intellectuals have to be ashamed of!’ In Europe, even those who produce theories on ‘European Islam,’ show Morocco as an example by ignoring the Turk Islam understanding. The impossibility of Morocco being an example is a historical determination. There is nothing from the millions of Turks and their intellectuals, from the politicians and the culture producers…! Sending or not sending troops to Iraq is not the main problem today. The question, ‘Exactly what role is Turkey going to play in the modernization of the Middle East?’ is more important. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) is trying to implement the reforms that had been delayed for years, while at the same time trying to control the modernization of the country and also trying to be the initiator of changes in the Middle East and the Arab world. Besides, it is getting stuck between the pro-modernization role that history and the nation have given it and the conservative role it wants to play. While the West has been exerting every effort since the Ottoman era to materialize the demands of modernizing Turkey, Ataturk did not do this through insistence but through the wish of the Turkish nation. This demand was enough to internalize modern life. Today our interests and those of the West overlap. The presence of tyrannical rulers, hunger, corruption, injustice and cruelty are things we do not want in the Middle East, politically and from the humanity perspective as well. Turkey needs to take the leading role in modernization instead of giving it to the Westerners. Because modernization had been brought to these lands during the hundreds years of Turkish culture, Anatolian life-style and culture. Its roots are here. Turkey is the representative of modern Islam and possesses the attributes of global tolerance. Turkey should do the pioneering work with its modernization role. The isolation policy is not going to do anybody any good. Anyway, in this kind of a world, isolation is not possible. Sending troops to Iraq is not a matter of discussion, because our soldiers have been in northern Iraq for the past 10 years anyway. So, the unavoidable is penetrating the borders. Northern Iraq cannot be abandoned to its own fate. Cooperating not clashing is what we need with the Kurdish groups. Turkey should be the architect of the live-together project in the entire region. In the long run, anti-Americanism will damage Turkey’s interests. Let us trust our culture and ourselves with courage. Let us see our place on the stage, because the Middle East will not calm down easily. September 16, 2003

Having been elected president twice, [Muhammad] Khatami is now spending his last days in office. The excitement over the presidential election, scheduled for June 17, has already spread across Iran.

The new president is of paramount important for Turkey. The sensitive balances in the region may be determined by this election. Even though Khatami, who is drawing the wrath of the city dwellers because of his failure in carrying out the promised reforms, appears to have successfully overcome the pressures over nuclear armament, the same cannot be said about the economy. Inflation and unemployment continue to bleed like two exploded veins. One million youths join the labor market every year. Only half of this number are able to find jobs. That the mullahs have centralized the economy, and have everything under their control, has created a bulky bureaucracy. All societal resources are monopolized by the state and no competition is allowed in key sectors. Subventions to wheat and gas amount to billions of dollars, and productivity is very low. Of course, this picture may be quite familiar to you. The government budget is continuously being punctured and economic activities of circles close to the government cannot be stopped. This black hole has not only created an illegal situation but has also made the fight against corruption impossible. The Islamic Republic of Iran, 25 years later, has created a religious elite economy, with the slogan, “for a more just order.” Many people are disappointed. They fear that an aggressive privatization policy would increase the discontentment among the people. The Guardian Council continuously blocks the privatization of banks and other key sectors, saying it contravenes the constitution. How familiar these events are! It can be argued that Iran is stuck between nuclear production and the economy. The US is closely watching that weak link. Deputy Commerce Minister Muhammad Kazai, said: “Iran needs investments to the tune of $20 billion every year.” The oil industry is Iran’s backbone, and if a solution for unemployment is to be sought here, old infrastructures have to be renovated. Iran’s Oil Ministry announced that it needs $70 billion to modernize of the oil infrastructure over the next 10 years. That means foreign capital. The religious elite and corruption are the nightmares of foreign capital. Because the laws can easily be violated. State Planning Organization Chairman Hamid Reza Beraderan says: “The biggest obstacle facing the economy is the US embargo.” As far as relations of both countries are concerned, lifting of the embargo seems very unlikely. However, surveys clearly show that the youths approve of and support relations with the United States. Former chief of police, Muhammad Baqer Qalibaf, who is seen as the most powerful candidate, promises to mend fences with the US. Qalibaf, who had also headed Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, says he is as pragmatic as pragmatist Akbar Hasemi Rafsanjani. Even though he has not declared his candidacy yet, Rafsanjani is preparing to join the election race. Oalibaf is an Iraq war veteran pilot, and by saying, “I believe in something basic, I do not belong the traditional political wings,” he is winning the hearts of the youths. Qalibaf who is a popular candidate with its colorful life and youth, had appointed women into the police force for the first time. Qalibaf, who is also against corrupt military officers, promises privatization and courageously discloses that the greatest hurdle is the state economy. Khatami’s adviser, Ali Akbar Velayeti, will also take part in the election. Ali Larijani has declared himself a candidate for the fundamentalists. Mohsen Rezai is also a candidate from this wing. On the reformist wing, former higher education minister, Mostafa Moin and former parliament speaker, Mehdi Karoubi, are candidates. There are concerns about ethnic division in Iran, where the dosage of nationalism is very high. A march by Arabs during demonstrations in the town of Ahvaz resulted in the death of one person. Kurds and Arabs are worried. The move to change Arab village names into Persian in Iran, where three percent of the population are Arabs, made people pour onto the streets. Meanwhile, 500 Iranian intellectuals have signed a declaration for a constitutional amendment. The disqualification of reformist candidates aroused indignation in the last election. In the meantime, the US Senate has earmarked $3 million to support the advancement of democracy in Iran, for the first time. Iran is a like a garden, very messy, with couch grass and spring boughs blooming side by side. As thorns pierce everybody’s hands, there is no gardener around to clean up the mess. This name [Iran] will remain an important one for Turkey over the next decade. April 19, 2005

Yazın bu at sineği gibi yapışan sıcağında aşk meşk düşünülür mü diye düşünür insan. Pek de haksız sayılmaz elbette. Hayatı her an yaşamak zorunda olduğumuz gerçeğidir sadece bizi sık boğaz eden. ne ertelenebilir ne de görmemezlikten gelinebilir olması hayatın. Aşk hayata sarmaşık gibi sarınmayı ifade eder,tıpkı geldiği kök kelime gibi. Bıkkınlığın doruk noktalarında takla attığımız Türkiye’de, sıcak denilen bir geviş getirme siyaset nerdeyse…. Umutsuzluğun şırınga edildiği Türkiye’de herşeye burun kıvırmadayız,aşk da bundan nasibini almakta. Hayata sarılmak için duymamız gereken yaşama sevinci nerede? Aşk’ı davet eden süslü kelebek bu sevinç değil midir? O olmadan ne yöne gideceğinize nasıl karar verebilirsiniz? Birini sevmeden nasıl önemli olabilir ki yaşamak?
Yaz sıcağı nemden bir tül perdeye sarınarak dolanırken ortalıkta yüreğim sıkışıyor. Aşk’ın kaçma nedeni sıcak ve nem olamaz diyorum. Bir iç huzuru aramaya gitti belki de solmayan yaprakların arasına. İç huzurunu yitiren insanın meşki olmaz bilirim.

sadece kavga ederek kendini ifade eden,ikiyüzlü davranan ama Allah’ı kandırmak isteyenlere,kibirden ve mevkiden başı dönmüş gözü kararmışlarla hala muhatap olmak insanın içini kemiriyor bir kurt gibi.
Yaz sıcağı tüm haşmetiyle çöreklenip şehrin üstüne silueti boğarken insanın içine de bir kurt düşüyor sanki. Kemirgen ve inatçı bir kurt. Yaz incecik giysilerin altından esen bir rüzgar sanki tüm duyguları sağa sola savuruyor. Geriye kalan bir avuç neşe olmalı diyorum. İşte!Aşk budur.
yüreği kırlangıç yuvası olan
cıvıltılı bir zamana
bırakılmış insan
ne sevmekten korkar
ne sevilmekten. Bunu biliyorum ya, bu da bana yeter vesselam.

Türkiye’ de herkes artık böyle gelmiş böyle gider diyen eski zihniyetin çöktüğünü görmekten mutlu!
Türkiye son 40 yıllık çalkantılı politik tarihinin en kaotik dönemini geçirmekte,fakat buradan bir yere çıkacağı umudu ufukta belirdi diyebiliriz. Politikacılar parti liderlerlerine “hayır” diyerek istifa edebiliyorlar. Elbette,sosyal olaylar tek faktörlü değildir. Bir çok faktör ve süreç iç içe işlemektedir.
Merkezde bir partinin olmaması Türkiye için büyük bir zafiyet oluşturmakta. Kentli, eğitimli kesim kadar Anadolu’nun bir çok yerinde insanlar da dünya vatandaşı olma düşündeler. Geçen haftalarda Manisa’dan iki saat uzaktaki Demirci’ de halka verdiğim konferans bana bunu daha iyi kanıtladı. Demirci’de bulunan etnoloji müzesi, özel sektörün gayretleriyle yapılan kütüphane ve bu kütüphaneye devam eden çoğunluk ilgi çekiciydi. Akşam kadın,erkek herkes havai fişeklerin patladığı bir şenlikle futbol başarımızı kutladı. Yüzleri kırmızı,beyaz boyalı gençler televizyondaki akranlarından asla farklı değillerdi. Herkes kalite istiyor. Herkes daha iyi bir hayat istiyor.
Demirci’ de bulunan öğretmen okulu öğrencileri mezuniyetleri şehir içinde bir yürüyüşle kutlarken, esnaf ellerinde kırmızı karanfiller onları öperek kutlamış ve uzun bir kortejle elele bir kutlama yaşanmış.
İhtiyacımız olan halkla kaynaşmış eğitim kurumları ve entellektüel odaklardır. Türk halkı okumaya inanan ,gönül vermiş bir halk. Türkiye’nin önündeki engel siyasiler değil, halkı için fikir üretmeyen entellektüellerdir.

Entelleküeller cesur,atak olmalı ve ürettikleri fikirler toplumun önünü açmalıdır. Bu çaba olmadan Türk toplumunun dünya aktörü olması güç.
Dünya sahnesinde artık yer almak isteyen Türk halkı önündeki tüm engellerden kurtulmak istiyor. Rüzgar neleri süpürecek bakalım! Batı’da sosyal demokrasinin kökeni 1848 devrimine, 1871 Paris komününe ve bütün işçi sınıfı geleneğine dayandırılır.Oradan Ekim devrimine gelinir. Türkiye’deki sınıf kavgası değil. Yenileşme ve modernleşme kavgası. 3.Selim’den beri (Nizam-ı Cedit’le başlayan) ordunun modernleşmesi toplumun Batı normlarıyla yüzleşmesi ve kabullenmesinin kavgasına sosyal demokrasi kavgası mı diyeceğiz? Jön Türkler ve onu takiben İttihat Terakki o kadrolarla Kurtuluş Savaşı ve Kuvvay-ı milliye temelinden de CHP yani Kemalist hareket çıkıyor tarihi süreçte önümüze.belkemiğini İttihatçı karoların oluşturduğu, temeli ordu-devlet memuru merkezli bir örgütlenme gerçekleşiyor. Osmanlı bürokrasisinin genç ve modernleştirmeci tarafı ile devletin modernleşmesini isteyen aydınları da bu ekipler de eklenerek CHP kuruluyor. Yani bu işçi sınıfı üstünde yükselen bir sosyal demokrasi değil. Devleti kurtarma, devleti ve milleti inşa etme hareketi. Çağın gereklerine uygun, çağdaş milliyetçi, milli devlet inşa etmek isteyen Atatürk tarafından kurulan CHP. İttihat Terakki devletçiliği getiren bir akım. Son temsilcisi Sait Halim Paşa modernleşmeyi kendi değerlerimizi kaybetmeden savunuyor.Takıldığı tek konu var:kadın hakları AKP’ye ne çok benziyor. İttihat terakki içinde 3 ana akım var. Bunlar Türk siyasetinin ana damarları: Türkçülük yapan kadrolar Enver Paşa gibi. Pan İslamizm’i savunanlar, (İttihad-ı İslam)İslamcı kadrolar Said-i Nursi, Teşkilat-ı Mahsusa-ı kuran Kuşcubaşı Eşref ve Mehmet Akif gibi Diğeri de;Anadolu kökenli ulusal milliyetçi akımın temsilcisi Mustafa Kemal İttihad-ı Milli Hepsinin izdüşümü bir parti olarak yaşıyor. Aydınlar gelenek olarak devletçiliği temsil ediyor zaten. Ezilenlerden yana olmak mı sosyal demokrasi? Köylüden yana olmak mı? Soysal demokrat kim?Ne istiyor? Hangi zemine basıyor? Teorik çerçevesi ve sentezi var mı? Katolik bir dost şöyle demişti bana:”bugün 55 yaşındayım, 9 yaşında bir çocukla konuşunca kendimi 500 yaşında hissediyorum”. Kutuplaşma önyargılarla beslenen ve takıntı haline dönüşen zihinsel yapılanmanın sonucu. Yeni bir yüzyıla ya da bilgi çağına takvimle saatle girilmiyor elbette.Spielberg’in filmi “Geleceğe Dönüş” hayal edilen zamana gitmek isteyen kahramanların makinenin bozulması sonucu olmadık zamanlara düşmelerini öyküler. Bizde de bazıları 1923’e gitmek istiyor, bazıları 1917 devrimine ışınlanmış duruyor,bazıları İslam’ın “altın çağ”larına gitmek derdinde, CHP gibi partililer 1930 saadet dönemini geri getirme hayalleri kuruyor. Ancak iki de bir “bugün”le yüzleşmek gerekiyor! Bu acıya katlanmak istemeyenler zaman makinasıyla geçmişe dönüp ulusal sınırların dikenli tellerle çevrili olduğu, Berlin duvarının yükseldiği, bu duvarlar ardında keyfi kararların alındığı ve uygulandığı altın çağı istiyorlar ve makinanın bozulduğunu kavramıyorlar.Şeyh Galip bile demiş:” yaşadığın çağdan başka altın çağ yoktur” diye.

Yakında Sevgililer Günü. Buna Batı geleneği diye çok kızanlar var. Ama dünyada sevgi, aşk gibi kavramlar kimsenin tekelinde olamaz. Ayrıca aşkın Batı kültürünün ürünü olduğunu söylemek cehalettir. Doğu kültüründe aşkın olmadığı koca bir yalandır. Doğu aşkın vatanıdır. Kültürel pınarıdır.

Aşk binbir yüzü ve zenginliğiyle Doğu’da cirit atar. Yusuf ile Züleyha, Kerem ile Aslı, Ferhat ile Şirin, Tahir ile Zühre, Leyla ile Mecnun, Elif ile Mahmut, Kamber ile Emrah gibi en güzel aşk öyküleri Doğu’ya aittir. Hıristiyan Batı kültürü aşk ve kadını aşağılarken Doğu aşk ile varolmanın yollarını bulur her insanda. “Aşk imiş her ne var alemde”der kulağımıza şair. İki cihana da aşk ile varılır bizim geleneğimizde. Tasavvuf kültürü aşk üstüne kuruludur. Allah aşkına varmak için “insanın gül cemali” sevilir. “Onlar sadece aşk diyorlar sana/ oysa aşk sultanımsın sen benim.” der Mevlana. Dervişlere aşık, aşıklara ozan boşuna mı der bizim kültürümüz. Toplumumuzda kutuplaşmalarla körüklenen nefret duygusu kültürel değerlerimizi alt üst ediyor. Aşk da boynu bükük bir çocuk. Kadın erkek ilişkisi de bencillik ve sevgisizliğe yelken açmış. Düşmanlıkların ve hasetlerin yolları tıkadığı ülkemizde sevgi özlemle beklenen bir asude bahar ülkesi. Nefret cehaletin, sevgi ve aşk ise bilginin çocuklarıdır. İnsanı seven nefretten uzak durur. Buz tutmuş kalpleri sevgiyle ısıtmak gerekir. Sevgi sadece kadınların işi değildir,erkekler de sevebilir. Sevgisini gösterebilir. Bir tek gül alarak bile. Kadın erkek beraberliği yaşamdan koparılmamalı. Kadın ve erkek toplumun iki yarısıdır. Hiç biri için diğerinden vazgeçilemez. Biri diğeri yerine ikame edilemez. Nasıl birlikte oldukları ise bir ülkenin sosyalleşmesinin göstergesidir. Toplumsal alanı hakkıyla paylaşmak. Yarın Sevgililer Günü. Bu gün sevgili bir dost, sevgili bir sevgili, sevgili bir eş, sevgili bir insan, sevgili bir kardeş olmanıza vesile olabilirse dünya daha yaşanılacak bir yer olur. Sevginin sonsuz ufkunda yüreğinizi bırakın bir uçurtma gibi salınsın. Yanınızdaki sevdiğinize yüreğinizi açın ve anlatın. Onu sevdiğinizi anlatın.Belki yarım kalır bir çok şey.Ölümlü olduğumuzu unutmayın. Hadi,yarın bir şeyler söyleyin ki içinizde kalmasın. Sevginizi gösterin. Sevgi sakladıkça değerlenmez. Sevgi paylaştıkça çoğalır. Paylaşın ve çoğaltın aşkı. Nefret bizden uzak olsun. Hoşgörü, sevgi ve aşkla yeni bir dünya kurabiliriz. Sevin yeter ki… Mutlu ve sevgi dolu bir Türkiye için.