Jan 15, 2016 we started our day at 9:30 am in front of turkish embassy. a group calling itself turkish american national steering committee (tansc) had heard about our vigil and had decided to protest our presence. they had shown up at 8:00 am. metropolitan police department of washington, dc, had decided to give them… Continue reading
Jan 12, 2016 America will pause to honor one of its heroes, Dr. King, on January 15, 2016. As Bakur (northern Kurdistan) comes under a Turkish war of aggression, we feel the need to make room for Dr. King’s message of nonviolence. To that end, we are undertaking A (open-ended) Kurdish Vigil for King’s Dream… Continue reading
Dec 30, 2015 “A spectre is haunting Europe—the spectre of communism.” So started the Communist Manifesto of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in 1848 and enough time has passed to say that the spectre did some good and a lot of harm when it finally showed up in Saint Petersburg, Russia, with a little bit… Continue reading
Nov 30, 2015 We’ve heard the old saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” We can now add: “Don’t judge a book by a quote in it!” The quote that troubles me is from a recent book about Turkey’s 11th president (2007-2014), Abdullah Gul: “We must have a vision that avoids slogans, focuses on… Continue reading
Nov 29, 2015 Namo Abdulla of Rudaw discusses Mr. Elci’s assassination with Joshua Walker and Kani Xulam.
Nov 29, 2015 Şu özlü sözü hepimiz duymuşuzdur: “Bir kitabı kapağına bakarak değerlendirmeyin.” Şimdi bu söze, şunu da ekleyebiliriz: “Bir kitabı içindeki tek bir bölüme bakarak değerlendirmeyin.” Sözünü ettiğim bölüm, Türkiye’nin 11. cumhurbaşkanı (2007 – 2014 yılları arasında görev yapmış) Abdullah Gül’’le ilgili yeni bir kitapta geçiyor: “Hesap vermenin, şeffaflığın ve iyi yönetimin hâkim olduğu,… Continue reading
Nov 15, 2015 My cheers for Russian President Vladimir Putin are tongue-in-check, based on his vow to bomb the Islamic State cutthroats and their cousins who are battling the Syrian regime of Bashar Assad. The man who demolished Grozny, the Chechen capital, and renamed its main boulevard after himself believes in the supremacy of brute… Continue reading
Kani Xulam Oct 6, 2015 The year was 249 BC. Rome was snarled in its First Punic War against mighty Carthage. One of the two Roman consuls for the year, Publius Claudius Pulcher, thirsted for “glory” and wanted to humiliate the great Carthaginian naval power. The fact that Romans were new to seafaring and… Continue reading
Kani Xulam September 13, 2015 There is a crisis in Iraqi Kurdistan. And it is spelled Barzani! But there doesn’t have to be a crisis. It is one that President Masoud Barzani created himself with his hold on prolonged power. He has generated it by wearing out his welcome—wanting to stay beyond his eight plus… Continue reading
Aug 13, 2015 Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu unfortunately talked out of both sides of his mouth last month in his Washington Post op-ed extolling his country’s battle against terrorism. Instead of letting the Post list his supposed credentials, he declared them himself, and in his opening lines no less: “A professor of history, diplomat… Continue reading