Turkey and the European Union

Anyone any opinions on Turkey?

Here's what I've gathered so far:

- Turkey wants to join the European Union - the decision will be made by the end of the year.
- The European Union has issues with Turkey's law system and wants the government to reform that system.
- Erdogan (Turkish prime minister) promises he'll be a good boy because his country needs the approval.

Recently:
- Turkey wants to make adultery punishable by time in prison. Detail: only for women.
- The European Union makes it clear that that's not the way to go if they want to join the Union.
- Erdogan (Turkish prime minister) gets mad and tells the European Union they don't have anything to say on internal Turkish affairs.

BTW, the turkish stock market closed at 4 points lower today.

I think that Turkey is too much up itself to have ANY intention of doing anything to improve its image. The country is positively stone age in its attitude to peoples rights, let alone womens.

The ancient city of Ephesus is there, and various other old things :)
Turkey just wants its cake and eat it too.

The US has supplied weapons and ordinance for years, but, once the original contract was in place, they wanted to produce the items, instead of purchasing them.

example: F16 aircraft, M16 rifle, there is a class of warship that they now build, also US.

They class their airports as military sites, only allowing tourists to land after darkness has fallen. Photography at these locations is a NO NO. British plane spotters were arrested for indulging their hobby at an AIRSHOW.......... To compound that problem, the spotters had just come from Greece [Cyprus for a reason there is 'hostility' between the two countries] and another airshow.

We [US, UK, EU] allow them to grandstand like this solely because they are the buffer between East and West, they are a Muslim country, trying to make it in the Christian West.

True, they have a Christian history, but for the sake of day to day business they are a Muslim state.

They have been in a state of warfare with the Armenians for decades:
http://www.armenians.com/Genocide/

During the second Gulf War, they stopped the landing of US troops in Turkey, that were going to open a second front in Northern Iraq, instead they positioned 000's of their own troops in the area, ready to advance into Iraq, to better help them destroy the homeland of the Armenians.

All in all, NOT a good ally, and only allowed to carry on as they do because they have a strategic value in the war on terror, which is the same reason for when we were in the cold war.

I've been on holidays to the country. They NEED the tourist's money, yet they still haven't come to terms with the basics of the welcome ceremony .................

Service with a SMILE.

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They class their airports as military sites, only allowing tourists to land after darkness has fallen.

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When did that happen? I don't know how many times I have enjoyed the morning sun taking off with a nice breakfast. Perhaps that is true in the badlands I have spoken of here before. It's a lot like the amarican old west or west Texas of today. :D

//Edit I take that back I flew into a **** hole once in the middle of the day scared shitless while I flew over anit-aircraft nests in a small town known to harbor pirates. I thought, perhaps this wasn't a good idea. Been back 4 times. :) Has it gotten worse or is that stereo typing?

As far as Turkey goes.
I've never landed or taken off at any time apart from middle of the night.
Tour companies don't mind, as it makes the scheduling of aircraft easier.
Daytime: Spain = 2hrs each way = 3 return trips per DAY
Night: Turkey = 4hrs each way = 1 return trip per night.

As for the military: They class the COASTLINE as a military zone, which accounts for the armed troops walking around beaches at any time day or night.

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I don't know how many times I have enjoyed the morning sun taking off with a nice breakfast.

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Taking off at breakfast means you travelled to the airport at night ................... :)

You are not the first mention these types of action along the coast. I have not seen that and it perplexes me. Perhaps it's securty related, not to them more to you? Perhaps that's when the cheap seat are? :D I actually lived there so that might be different? Ankara is beautiful, as is Izmir and Ankara.

\\EDIT

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Taking off at breakfast means you travelled to the airport at night ...................

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Nope, means I got up at 7 and left at 8 since they are small airports with like 2 gates. Borded the plane at 8:30 with hot Turkish coffee and eggs. No bacon, they serve NOT sausages.
;)

As you lived there, you see the country as a place to work, rest and play [Mars bars, send royalties to AO] As a tourist, you see the DIFFERENCES in that country.

I lived in Spain for some time back in the 80's [years not months]. I liked Spain before that, and I would like to live there again one day. But for me the differences in Turkey were too much to assimilate in the two weeks of holiday's we had.

I had problems with the Imam calling the faithful to prayer five times a day, not because of the calling, but because he was using LOUDSPEAKERS.

We were staying in the small town of Cesme to the west of Izmir, just off the coast was the Greek isle of Khios, getting there for a day trip was an adventure in itself, ending up with four visa stamps in our passports.

I've been to the tourist hotspots of Ulu Deniz, Bodrum and the like. Cesme was the best holiday, but that was more to do with the people we met there, than anything that we found there.

That call to prayer is burned in my memory. I know them all by heart because they are broadcast on VERY loud speakers. Tough pulling a hangover with the first one of the day. One positive, it's a hell of a time keeping mechanism. :) You really can't go into a village or city and get away from them, they are every few blocks.

Turkey's approach to human rights varies broadly depending on where you are. I would feel no more ashamed of Turkey than I would of Frankfurt or Amsterdam. I remember much of the same arguments applied to Portugal. In some aspects the two societies share similar social issues: male dominance. Of course I am on this side of the ocean so I can only go on what I have access too.