Thunder of History

The Prime Minister of Turkey has spoken. According to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Europe must give way to the Ottoman Turk or face a future of death and destruction:

“Accepting a country that has brought together Islam and democracy will bring about harmony between civilisations. If, on the other hand, it is not welcomed, the world will have to put up with the present situation,” he said, referring to terrorism by such groups as al-Qaeda — whose local affiliates hit Turkey last year, bombing the British consulate and three other targets in Istanbul.

“That is the very clear and present danger and it is all around us today. There is nothing we can do if the EU feels that it can live with being simply a Christian club . . . but if these countries burn their bridges with the rest of the world, history will not forgive them.”

This amazing statement must not be taken lightly. The Ottoman Turks were the conquerers of the Second Rome, the city of Constantnople. This city was the last great Roman city of SPQR (Senate and People of Rome) that withstood the Germanic invasions of Western Europe which brought down the old empire in the west in 476 AD. Constantople, a Roman city-state, single handidly withstood invasions for nearly 1000 years from Persians, Arabs, Slavs, and Turks. Until finally, after recovering from a brief occupation by Frankish Crusaders, she gave up the ghost when the Ottoman Turks burst thru the Walls of Byzantium in the mid-15th century. By virtue of this victory over WESTERN CIVILIZATION, the Turks feel they must be treated with all due respect.

“We are Muslim, we are Turkish, we are democratic and our country is secular,” he said, emphasising every phrase. “Nothing else need be said.” Nevertheless, he believed that the EU, in trying to add safeguards and get-out clauses in the draft for the talks, was discriminating against Ankara. “I am of the opinion that Turkey is being faced with tougher criteria compared to other candidate countries,” he said. “No other country had to wait for 41 years at Europe’s door. We have fulfilled all the criteria, but despite this Europeans are hesitating.”

The embers of the Old Empire of Rome are burning hot by the winds of Islamic threats. These amazing statements coming from a head of state of one of the old empires of Islam almost seem out of historical context. But alas, it is the 21st Century and it is a new political era. It must be noted that it was Turkey that blocked the American 4th Infantry Divsion from invading Iraq from the North of Mosul during Operation Iraqi Freedom in April of 2003.

Despite his criticism, he remains optimistic, saying that he expected to be offered a start date within the next year for talks with the goal of full membership. He said: “In the last days of the Ottoman Empire we were then called the sick man of Europe. Note, of Europe, never the sick man of Asia. You said so yourself.”