I’m sure the mufti was joking
Did you read it?
The mufti of the northwestern district of Keşan, Süleyman Yeniçeri, has criticized New Year celebrations. As a matter of fact, it is quite an outdated discourse. We have heard enough of “This is a Christian tradition; it does not suit a Muslim.” Nobody cares much anyway.
What made me laugh the most were these words of Yeniçeri: “It is not known if Santa Claus really lived. They speak of a place and say he lived there, but it is actually a character invented by the Christian world. Santa Claus enters homes through chimneys and windows, yet he would have entered homes through the door if he was a decent person. We enter homes through doors. The Quran tells us to enter homes through doors. Why would he enter through the chimney?”
As I said, I laughed hard first although later I was sorry. Somebody who is giving religious advice to society thought Santa Claus was real and did not know his entrance through the chimney symbolizes prosperity in Western traditions, or that he is a mythical figure and entertainment for children. On the contrary, he took Santa seriously and assumed him to be a “suspicious man who enters through the chimney.”
I really do not want to believe the mufti of Keşan made this speech seriously. I’m sure he was joking when he said this.
KCK arrests will not give the desired result
You will see that the mass arrests of the alleged urban wing of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), will get us into trouble.
According to the state, this organization is urban staffing for the outlawed PKK. Meaning, at a future date when the PKK leaves arms, this mechanism made up of these staff will govern the “Autonomous Kurdish Region.” With these arrests, they claim, a structure it supposes will confront us in the future is being cracked down upon.
Even if all these assumptions were true, a very important point escapes attention, and that is those arrested generally have political identities without any connection to terror. In other words, the personnel who will be fighting with their views instead of weapons are being arrested.
There are two outcomes of this approach: One is politics is blocked from Kurds and the second is more space is opened for the PKK terror.
I cannot understand where we are heading with this stance. The only direction has to be more bloodshed and more confusion. If the state has a deeper and longer-term strategy, I do not know of it. But whoever makes these calculations should inform the public also.
Dying at an earthquake suits us
A survey of the research firm A&G published in daily Milliyet at the beginning of the week was like a reflection of Turkish society. Our people, who cry out loud at every earthquake, “Where is the state? Why are they not helping us?” perceive the earthquake as “fate.” According to the majority of respondents, “Earthquakes happen with Allah’s orders.” The state is expected to aid the victims.
Look at this situation: 84 percent of society does not know if the building they are living is earthquake-resilient. They have never had it checked. The rate of those who have not made any preparations for the earthquake is also scary at about 70 percent. After seeing this survey, I could not keep myself from saying, “It suits us.”
