erkan

"The YÖK issue

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News
John Singer Sargent (United States, 1856–1925), Dolce Far Niente, 1907 found here

The Turkish ’68 – The Lost Generation

The resurgence of Islam in Turkey began as a counter-reaction to the leftist student activism of 1968; one of the key activists among the right-wing students of the time is now the country’s president. Zafer Senocak takes a look back"

The YÖK issue

By ESER KARAKAŞ, STAR

The Higher Education Board (YÖK) has been an interesting institution, as well as an interesting issue, since it was established. On YÖK’s anniversary, on Nov. 6, if I am not mistaken, this issue will be discussed once again.

A case to take a lesson from

Kudos to the students of Boğaziçi University! Congratulations to those who lend support to others’ fight for freedom! Please look once again at that beautiful photo that will leave its mark on the history of Boğaziçi University.

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"Reuters sues academic for making a Firefox plugin that lets you annotate and reference articles

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Reuters sues academic for making a Firefox plugin that lets you annotate and reference articles

By Cory Doctorow on Copyfight

Espen sez, "In a move leading me to suspect they have hired laid-off lawyers from RIAA, Endnote (owned by Reuters) has sued GMU and Dan Cohen for the latest version of Zotero (a Firefox plugin that lets you save, annotate and academically reference articles you find online). This is an amazingly stupid market move: Suing an academic for making software for other academics because the software allows you to convert styles (which in turn were freely contributed by other academics) – when your main market is academics."

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"What ?common European values??

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What ‘common European values’?

The German Marshall Fund of the US sponsors annual surveys on "Transatlantic Trends." The "Key Findings" of the 2008 survey conducted last June in the US and a number of European countries, including Turkey, was published this month. The report’s section titled "Turbulent Turkey" opens by pointing to the fact that "in recent years observers have expressed concerns about Turkey turning away from the Western alliance."

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"Credit crunch hits European banks……..

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Credit crunch hits European banks

Top officials from Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and the EU held emergency meetings over the weekend to prevent bank and insurance giant Fortis from becoming the eurozone’s first major victim of the global financial crisis.

In defence of Anglo-Saxon capitalism

By Centre for European Reform

by Charles Grant

Those who never liked ‘Anglo-Saxon’ capitalism are feeling smug. Marxists, fans of ‘Rhineland’ capitalism and those who simply cannot stand American power are crowing. “The US will lose its status as the superpower of the world financial system,” says Peer Steinbruck, Germany’s finance minister. “Self-regulation is finished, laisser faire is finished, the idea of an all powerful market which is always right is finished,” says France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy. The British academic (and sometime fan of Margaret Thatcher) John Gray proclaims that “in a change as far-reaching in its implications as the fall of the Soviet Union, an entire model of the government and the economy has collapsed.”

 

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"25 Harshest Reactions To the Wall Street Bailout

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25 Harshest Reactions To the Wall Street Bailout

By Mark Frauenfelder

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"AAA proposes changes to code of ethics

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AAA proposes changes to code of ethics

By Rex on Ethics

The AAA Public Affairs blog has a long post by AAA president Setha Low on proposed changes to the AAA code of ethics that deals with the hue and cry raised at the AAA meetings last year. Why not give the AAA blogs some love, head over, and comment over there?

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Erkan's 10-day writing camp begins

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After a few very angry and agitated days, I am alone and relaxed. Turkey has entered a 9-day official break. An ultimate statement of a lazy society. The occasion is Ramadan Bairam or Şeker (sugar) bayramı. Naming the bayram is an ideological act- oh i begin to be agitated again. For a person like me … Read more

" The high cost of anti-democratic fantasies

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 The high cost of anti-democratic fantasies
 
Macroeconomic indicators, released one after another, show that Turkey’s economic growth has slowed and that there has been a sharp decline in inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) to Turkey.
 
Turkish singer Bulent Ersoy arrives at a court house in Istanbul, ...

Turkish singer Bulent Ersoy arrives at a court house in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2008. Ersoy, a popular transsexual Turkish singer, has showed up for the second hearing of her trial on charges of trying to turn the public against obligatory military service. Ersoy could face more than two years in prison for saying during a live television show that if she had children, she would not want them to join the army to fight Kurdish rebels. Military service is obligatory for men over the age of 20 in Turkey, and it is a crime to speak against it. Banners in Kurdish in the background read that:

‘Long live the diva’ (AP Photo/Ibrahim Usta)

 

Kılıçdaroğlu and Fırat remain unsatisfied

The ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, deputy leader defended himself against claims made by the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, parliamentary group deputy leader

 allegations.

What happens when the military defines the concepts? by LÜTFÜ ÖZŞAHİN

Relations between the military and politics in Turkey have once again become the focal point of discussion following the recent press conferences held by the General Staff, additional arrests in connection with the Ergenekon case, a visit paid by the military to retired generals held in prison and the discharge of retired Gen. Şener Eruygur, who is also a prime suspect in the Ergenekon case.

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"EU agrees on key immigration pact

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EU agrees on key immigration pact

EU ministers agree on a plan to curb illegal immigration while easing the rules for highly-skilled workers.

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fluorescent lamps vs soft yellowy desk lamps

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I never claim to have high aesthetic standards. I like the brightness indoors, which is best provided by fluorescent lamps. I hate a somber office environment provided by only using desk lamps. Unfortunately all female personnel I know like to have that. If we are in a bar, that’s all right. But i would like … Read more

Bartholomew's speech in the European Parliament

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TO THE PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT (Brussels, September 24, 2008) * * * Your Excellency Mr President of the European Parliament, Your Excellencies, Honorable Members of the European Parliament, Distinguished Guests, Dear Friends, First and foremost, we convey to you salutations from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, based for many many centuries in … Read more

"Neo-Ottomanism and Kemalist foreign policy

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Neo-Ottomanism and Kemalist foreign policy

Davutoğlu argues that Turkish foreign policy had been unbalanced, with an overemphasis on ties with Western Europe and the United States to the neglect of Turkey’s interests with other countries, particularly in the Middle East. His vision displays familiar characteristics of "neo-Ottomanism," which builds on the approach of former President Turgut Özal. According to this view Turkey needs to rediscover its imperial legacy and seek a new national consensus where the multiple identities of Turkey can coexist. ………

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"Why Washington Hates Wall Street…

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SlaSlate Why Washington Hates Wall Street

An 80-year rivalry explained.
Timothy Noah



found in Obama bumper-stickers for every state project now complete

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Google's phone; Technorati's State of Blogosphere report…

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Technorati’s State of The Blogosphere 2008 Is Out

By Daniel Scocco

Almost one year passed since the last State of the Blogosphere report, but the new one is finally here. Not only that, but apparently this one is bigger and more comprehensive. So big they are breaking it down in 5 parts, one released each day of this week.

state of blogosphere 2008

The first part of the report is titled “Who Are the Bloggers?”……………..

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Newsweek involved (again) in Turkish domestic politics….

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After a series of hard defeats in the domestic front- in the last one, the new chief of staff seems to be taking easy for the moment and upsetting secularists for not immediately and directly acting against AKP- the dogmatically secularists are weaving their web abroad and working harder to discredit AKP in US and in Europe. Mr. Çağaptay is the embodiment of this situation- I have already criticized him several times- and now his ideas on the Erdoğan vs. Doğan Media Conglomeration are in Newsweek, a totally partisan piece. Mr. Çağaptay might be the most successful western-credited intellectual who managed to ignore any positive signs about AKP, which seems to have formed the most successful government and most powerful civilian rule since 1980 coup. Here is his piece at Newsweek: 

Newsweek Turkey’s Media War The dispute is really a political matter—yet another attempt by Erdogan and the AKP to neuter a bastion of opposition. By Soner Cagaptay…….

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