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Coup attempt underway in Turkey

theatlantic.com

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Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#51

Post by BukhariH »

watermelon59 wrote: post #37
BukhariH wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't be so sure about Erdogan losing power. Erdogan has an extreme amount of support within the country not just from the people but from the Turkish intelligence services & military aswell. A lot of people have elevated him to the same level as Ataturk. I'm about 80% sure Erdogan will manage to retain power from just what I know about Turkish politics - which isn't a lot to be honest. Early days right now but…

Tangential, but why do people support Erdogan? From what I hear he's a terrible leader and moving towards a full dictatorship.

I think in the west we only see Turkey as Istanbul which happens to be the extremely liberal part of Turkey.

The rest of the country is far more conservative so they don't see the clamping down on various freedoms as being a problem and on top of the Erdogan has actually really done a good job of developing the poorer regions of Turkey which were rife with high unemployments and low prospects. On top of that people believe he's raised Turkey's importance on the world stage.

Another reason why I'm about 90% he'll win now that the opposition political parties have just come out against the coup - which if you know anything about Turkey is HUGE. These parties have literally called for Erdogan to be jailed but right now they're supporting him.

I don't even know what to make of that. I'm shocked.

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#52

Post by cperciva »

Why did people support Hitler? Why do people support Trump? Why do people support Putin?

Some people aren't very concerned with democratic principles; some people like the policy agenda and are willing to sacrifice democratic principles in order to get the policies they want; some people are gullible and believe scapegoat arguments; some people, particularly in times of insecurity, seek out a "strong man".

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#53

Post by J_Darnley »

aerovistae wrote: post #47

Mods: Why do you delete news posts like this one? I understand you're trying to keep Hacker News tech/business/science focused, maybe, but don't you think major world events that are getting tons of interest should be allowed to float up to the front page on their own merit? If the users are interested in it, why is it being deleted? I feel like major events like yesterday's massacre in Nice or today coup d'état meri…

It isn't mods killing off these stories, it is users like me flagging them.

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#54

Post by jnbiche »

watermelon59 wrote: post #37
BukhariH wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn't be so sure about Erdogan losing power. Erdogan has an extreme amount of support within the country not just from the people but from the Turkish intelligence services & military aswell. A lot of people have elevated him to the same level as Ataturk. I'm about 80% sure Erdogan will manage to retain power from just what I know about Turkish politics - which isn't a lot to be honest. Early days right now but…

Tangential, but why do people support Erdogan? From what I hear he's a terrible leader and moving towards a full dictatorship.

> Tangential, but why do people support Erdogan?

Why do people support Trump?

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#55

Post by calibraxis »

einrealist wrote: post #46

It is bad that a (mostly) democratic elected government is (tried to be) removed this way. This will make it really difficult to work with whoever is in power, internationally. But Erdogan forced this on the military. They were told to stand down against ISIS and to fight a new impossible-to-win fight against the kurdish minority. I really hope the situation will somehow calm down. Otherwise we could have a new civil…

At least the coup leaders and the US State Dept are sending sensible signals. John Kerry's waiting to see who wins before committing (Erdogan frustrates the US, and many assumed the US would try to overthrow him), and the coup leaders are reassuring Turkey's powerful allies.

"U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says he hopes for stability and continuity in Turkey following reports that an attempted military coup is under way in the NATO member state." (http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2016-07-15/kerr...)

“Turkish Armed Forces have completely taken over the administration of the country to reinstate constitutional order, human rights and freedoms, the rule of law and the general security that was damaged,” the military said in a statement. “All international agreements are still valid. We hope that all of our good relationships with all countries will continue.” (https://www.rt.com/news/351343-turkey-coup-military-attempt/)

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#56

Post by rahkiin »

BukhariH wrote: post #51
watermelon59 wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tangential, but why do people support Erdogan? From what I hear he's a terrible leader and moving towards a full dictatorship.

I think in the west we only see Turkey as Istanbul which happens to be the extremely liberal part of Turkey. The rest of the country is far more conservative so they don't see the clamping down on various freedoms as being a problem and on top of the Erdogan has actually really done a good job of developing the poorer regions of Turkey which were rife with high unemployments and low prospects. On top of that people b…

What I readwas that those parties have said to Not go on the streets, but that erdogan-fans misread that (maybe intentionally) and tweeted about it, and retweeted, etc. Erdogan said to go on the streets.

It is all a mess with propaganda, stress and confusion everywhere

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#57

Post by r00fus »

cperciva wrote: post #52

Why did people support Hitler? Why do people support Trump? Why do people support Putin? Some people aren't very concerned with democratic principles; some people like the policy agenda and are willing to sacrifice democratic principles in order to get the policies they want; some people are gullible and believe scapegoat arguments; some people, particularly in times of insecurity, seek out a "strong man".

Or they see the coup as endangering the economic situation which could lead to more job-losses and the like.

Let's be honest, would you support a coup in your country if that meant potentially years of unrest and economic crisis?

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#58

Post by BukhariH »

rahkiin wrote: post #56
BukhariH wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think in the west we only see Turkey as Istanbul which happens to be the extremely liberal part of Turkey. The rest of the country is far more conservative so they don't see the clamping down on various freedoms as being a problem and on top of the Erdogan has actually really done a good job of developing the poorer regions of Turkey which were rife with high unemployments and low prospects. On top of that people b…

What I readwas that those parties have said to Not go on the streets, but that erdogan-fans misread that (maybe intentionally) and tweeted about it, and retweeted, etc. Erdogan said to go on the streets. It is all a mess with propaganda, stress and confusion everywhere

I not sure that's right.

I was talking about HDP who have posted this on their official twitter:

"There is no way other than embracing democratic politics."

Source: https://twitter.com/HDPgenelmerkezi/status/75408082363312537...

Re: Coup attempt underway in Turkey

#60

Post by Animats »

scarmig wrote: post #15

Anyone have a take on how successful this is likely to be? Both sides are claiming victory and that they've beaten the other side, naturally. Propaganda is everywhere. The only thing I figure is that since Erdogan is calling for a mass uprising in the streets, the status quo has him losing. He needs to radically change the dynamics of the situation to stay in power, and mass protests and displays of martyrdom in the…

No. Erdogan called for people to take to the streets, and within an hour, the airport and bridge were filled with thousands of people waving flags. (From pictures, all male.) That's popular support. The military is not attacking the crowds. The military presence was apparently not that big, concentrating on a few key spots.

A coup has to succeed within the first few hours. Control must be established before opposition mobilizes. If the coup drags on, it fails. Failure is either a loss or a civil war.

Suggested reading: "Coup d'État: A Practical Handbook"[1]

[1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/0674737261

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