You’re not likely to understand the video below for two reasons:
(1) It’s in Turkish, which you probably don’t speak.
(2) It’s one of the gutsiest acts of non-violent civil disobedience that you’ll ever see — truly spectacular by the standards of comfortably successful Americans.
It’s a successful man putting it on the line — possibly throwing away his career just to make a point and connect to viewers. He’s speaking of that of which he is not supposed to speak — without apparent fear. And yes, this guy is part of their version of Occupy. And get this — he’s performing this act of resistance through the Bloomberg network!
Here’s the background according to the New York Times:
While most of Turkey’s journalists were carefully avoiding mention of the tens of thousands of protesters who poured into the streets this week, in a show of deference to the government that enraged supporters of the demonstrations, the host of one Turkish game show found a way to raise the issue not once but 70 times during a broadcast on Monday night.
As dozens of flabbergasted viewers reported on Twitter, Ali Ihsan Varol, the star of the Bloomberg TV quiz show “Kelime Oyunu,” or “The Word Game,” crafted the questions so that all of the answers — phrases like “Taksim,” “gas mask,” “Twitter” and “dictator” — were thinly veiled references to the government’s failed crackdown on dissent and the way the news media blackout had been undermined by social networking.
Get it? The government was turning off social networking, so this man found a way to broadcast the news, and government commentary, in the middle of a freaking popular game show, with a straight face!
That’s the kind of setting a good example that can get a guy killed — or, at least, fired and blackballed from television. But it can also create the sort of martyrdom that can fuel a revolution.
How is the Turkish government taking this? Not violently bad, so far — but not so well:
The day after his sudden turn into political satire, Mr. Varol reported on Twitter that he had been asked not to go ahead with the scheduled live broadcast of his show and that a prerecorded episode would be shown instead. On Wednesday, the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported, the host described his current situation as “somewhat complicated.”
Well, with Jon Stewart on vacation, someone get this man an emergency visa!
Here’s the recap of his questions and answers — out on live TV during the middle of the media blackout about the resistance — from the link just above:
Here’s a (rough) translation of the questions and answers Ali Ihsan Varol asked his guests on live TV on June 3rd (Turkish here, feedback welcome, very quick translation):
1- A journey undertaken to see, to have fun: GEZI –name of the park that is at the center of the protests.
2- A large garden with trees and flowers in the center of a place of residence that allows people to breathe: PARK
3- In international law, someone who is not a member of armed forces or other armed groups in a country: CIVILIAN
4- An activity geared towards trying to change or improve a situation: A PROTEST [EYLEM]
5- A coming together around a set of ideas without being divided: UNITY
6- The metaphor for understanding what the facts are: TO WAKE UP
7- The people Mustafa Kemal Ataturk said should be “the most important representatives of human dignity and qualities, defense of nation and freedom of speeech”:YOUTH
8- The ability to make decisions according to correct, meaningful interpretation: COMMON SENSE
9- Property that should never be vandalized or damaged, that belong to all the people: PUBLIC PROPERTY
10-Ideology that depends on non-violence to carry out protests: PACIFISM
11-To damage public property on purpose: VANDALISM
12-Democratic solution box: THE BALLOT BOX
13-A voting method to ask the people what they think about political and social problems: REFERENDUM
14-The person that turns the right into not right and the protester into terrorist: PROVOCATEUR
15-People who live in the same country, share a culture: PEOPLE
16-A long-lived plant that is the symbol of being free: TREE
17-An area covered by treas considered symbol of fraternal unity: FOREST
18-The kids from Beşiktaş with the soul of Don Quixote (or chevalier): ÇARŞI
19-The neighborhood whose name means “to divide” but also unites: TAKSIM (Turkish word play here)
20-A word that means a large area: SQUARE
21-To take steps together to protest an event or an happening: PROTEST MARCH
22-To resist, to not give up: RESISTANCE
23-To find an event or an application as unfair, and not accept it and resist it: PROTEST
24-To be able to decide without undue pressure from outside: FREEDOM
25-The act of supporting each other for shared thoughts and goals: SOLIDARITY
26-What happens when all workers stop working: GENERAL STRIKE
27-To come together for a common goal: ORGANIZE
28-A word that means to rise up, to march: INSURRECTION
29-The best name for a TV station: HALK (PEOPLE — the name of the TV station that covered the protests)
30-The totality of qualities that one should abide by or avoid in occupations like media: ETHICS
31-The thing that is referred to in Article 28th of the Turkish Constitution as “Free and Cannot be Censored”:PRESS
32-The communication medium defined by Nezihe Meriç as “A dragon with a thousand heads”: MEDIA
33-An action that means the same thing as approval: SILENCE
34-Limiting the freedom of press, communication, film or books by government: CENSORSHIP
35-The person who is supposed to learn about an event and write about in various outlets: JOURNALIST
36-The microblog and social network site that has been described as a “curse”: TWITTER
37-The person Mustafa Kemal Ataturk said should “write his/her thoughts freely:” JOURNALIST
38-Person who tries to kiss up to power: BROWN NOSER
39-The state of being able to resist power or injustice but being quiet: COWARDICE
40-The branch that is held on to by people after being abandoned by mainstream media: SOCIAL MEDIA
41-A piece of news that gets published by media outlets but that is not true: FALSE NEWS
42-To make things worse by one’s statements or behavior: CANAK TUTMA (metaphor for enabling)
43-The vehicle for interjecting in protests: TOMA (APC)
44-A word that means “Just Don’t:” AMAN. (Turkish word)
45-A public employee whose name comes from Greek for city, state, civics: POLICE
46-The totality of social laws that means rights: LAW
47-The guide to laws: LAWYER
48-Naked power: VIOLENCE
49-To be held by police forces: DETENTION
50-An obstacle created to block a road or a path: BLOCKADE
51-Something that needs to be done sometimes to lessen tensions: TAKE A STEP BACK
52-The feeling of mercy that should be shared by everyone in all occupations: COMPASSION
53-Word for use of violence without any common sense: DISPROPORTIONATE
54-A weapon that attacks eyes, nose, mouth and lung tissue, a weapon oleosresin capsicum: PEPPER SPRAY
55-What APC’s excrete: PRESSURIZED WATER
56-Democracy breather: GAS MASK
57-The main institution whose principle is “the power belongs unconditionally to the people”: TURKEY’S PARLIAMENT
58-The word that means the same as “Cumhur”: PEOPLE (which is how the president is referred to in Turkey: the
head of the people, Cumhurbaşkanı)
59-To limit rights and freedoms: REPRESSION
60-The word that means to see oneself as better than other people: HUBRIS
61-The person who does not allow freedoms to people they rule: DESPOT
62-The internal court which is what propels people to judge their own actions: CONSCIENCE
63-The arabic-root word which means to “go away from the correct path”: DEVIATE
64-The person who is trying to actualize his/her ideas, thoughts: CAPULCU (LOOTER which is what the Prime Minister called the protesters)
65-A town in Hatay that is famous for its baths: REYHANLI (where a bombing was followed by press censorship)
66-A person that concentrates all political power: DICTATOR
67-A person who serves for money: SERVANT
68-A ruling system in which executive power can act independent of judiciary: PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM (internal Turkish political transition discussion)
69-To voluntarily give up a position: RESIGN
70-The act that makes a person bigger by asking to be forgiven for wrong actions: APOLOGIZE
I’d like to say that he’s “one of us,” but that may be giving ourselves too much credit. He’s one of what we should be, at our best.
This is your Weekend Open Thread. Talk about this, or whatever else you wish, within broad bounds of decency and decorum.
NSA picked up this email while data mining MSNBC
From: Phil Griffen, MSNBC Exec.
To: Chris Hayes, Talking Head on MSNBC
Date: June 1, 2013
Chris!
I can’t tell you how sorry I am that your bicycle “Mandela” is still missing. Despite the progress our country has made over the years, it is still troubling to see that inequality would still cause someone to blah blah blah…
Listen, asshole: You begged me for a primetime slot, we bet the farm on you, and your ratings are garbage. Did you know that last night your show lost out in the ratings to a Norwegian-language public access show about shitting in the woods? I’m not fucking kidding. Something called “Ulrike takes a Woodbath” literally destroyed you in the demo.
So right now is not a good time for you to be making demands. Not while your show — “Nerdfest with Fuckface,” or whatever piece of shit name you came up with — sits there struggling for air like a lithe 20-year-old making love with Ed Schultz. At this point, I’m open to the idea of having you whacked on air Howard Beale-style just so Rachel can enjoy a solid lead-in for a night.
With Every Good Wish,
Phil Griffen
Love this. Love it.
http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/romney-leading-democrat-thought-i-was-going-to
Your guess as to who he means by the “leading Democrat”? Mine is Dick Morris — who isn’t one.
Seriously, my Republican amigos — you’re glad that this petulant narcissist isn’t in the White House too, right?
P.S. Isn’t he in effect admitting that the Republican strategy for victory was to keep unemployment high?
Behold, your “new” Republican Party;
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-gop-rejects-deportation-deferrals-20130606,0,5055504.story
I’d like to buy a vowel
Here’s this week’s OC Register Dearthwatch. It’s now been two months and a few days since the imposition of the paywall — and things may be stabilizing a bit.
One exception: you’ll note that most political blogs (not us, though) moved up this week. (I have to have a talk with my Lib OC colleagues about whether there might be some “gaming of the system” going on, because we seem to be a lot more active than they do but they continue to climb…. At OJB, we do not game the system, partly because we don’t know how.)
Voice of OC seems to be stabilizng after a pretty massive improvement since the paywall, rivaled in their “league” only by the HB Independent. Maybe they need to advertise more; they certainly have the product to deliver. The Weekly has a good week. The Register continues its slide, pretty much like clockwork. I think that the lower drop this week may be because I checked the numbers later than usual last week, so perhaps they should be labeled as “6/1” instead. It doesn’t matter for any other row, but when the Register’s drop is so consistent it can make a difference.
You’ll note that I’ve added some new ones onto the end, ones I now wish I’d included from start because they represent other places where people might get their online news, if they don’t get it from the Register. For state news, for example, this would include the Sacramento Bee — although Orange Countians fleeing there would be just a small bump for them. The only major local TV news station to use its own URL (rather than branching off of its parent network, making checking its local progress impossible) is NBC4, so they make the chart. And, finally, there’s KFI and KPCC, respectively representing news that stereotypical conservatives and liberals might seek (despite, in the latter case, Larry Mantle.) I’ll probably update these monthly or so; we’ll see.
A yoga video you might enjoy… dedicated to EW Jackson — the GOP’s choice to be the next Lt. Gov. of Virginia
He’s not very good at any of the poses, but, he’s Satanic.
Downward dog, the heels should be on the ground, the knees straight.
Child’s pose, the hands and arms are shoulder width apart.
Shoulder stand should only be done with a folded blanket under the shoulders to relieve pressure on the neck(Iyengar).
Plough pose was good.
The wheel pose looked like it hurt, or would soon. All of the bend was in two or three vertebras, not evenly along the spine, but I’m jealous because I can’t do that pose. He is younger and more flexible than I am.
That is not the tree pose. Your raised foot should be on your inner thigh, not shin crossing your thigh.
The corpse pose or shavasana, may be the most important pose of yoga, with your arms and legs at a 45 degree angle, and long and deep pranayama.
Now don’t forget that like Michael the Archangel, Satan is an Angel too.
Obviously, the devil works in mysterious ways.
And then of course there’s this…. if you like funny cat videos, which I DON’T, but this one is good enough for even me to like…
LOL!!!
Made my cat watch this several times as part of her therapy.
She’s in Jungian analysis, because she thinks that she has a horrible life. This video offers some baseline perspective of her peers.
I think she’s just bulimic. We’ve covered up all of the mirrors.
+1.
Vern! Safe Harbor!
http://www.voiceofoc.org/countywide/this_just_in/article_42fb3b20-cf0d-11e2-a3e4-0019bb2963f4.html
Too Bad This Guy Isn’t President
“…no more illegal wiretapping of American citizens. No more national security
letters to spy on citizens who are not suspected of a crime. No more tracking
citizens who do nothing but protest a misguided war. No more ignoring
the law when it is inconvenient.” – Barack Obama, 2007
http://michaelmoore.com/
Back to the story that won’t go away…GMOs.
“Since the announcement of the discovery of the genetically modified wheat in Oregon, Japan — one of the largest export markets for U.S. wheat growers — suspended some imports. South Korea said it would increase its inspections of U.S. wheat imports.
Monsanto has called the emergence of the genetically modified strain an isolated occurrence and said it likely was the result of an accident or deliberate mixing of seeds.”
Accident or deliberate mixing of seeds? That’s corporate speak for “eff you, farmers.”
Dem… we want to keep the GMO story on the front burner…
http://q13fox.com/2013/06/07/washington-state-farmers-sue-monsanto-over-genetically-engineered-wheat/#axzz2Ve3kWfNP
I thought Monsanto — conveniently– got a law passed to save them from lawsuits… a month BEFORE the wheat fiasco…. hmmmmm
Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. Martin Luther King Jr
One toke over the line ….
A-one-and-a-two!!! His show was on in my house every week…who knew he was a midnight toker!
Inge – Did you notice the ganja green jackets on the orchestra and the host? – ha!
Did someone say GMO???? Massive Database of GMO Evidence gives Worldwide Pictures of Harm:
http://gmoevidence.com/
Did someone mention sugar? Monsanto 1, Humanity & Mother Earth 0. If it doesn’t say SUGAR CANE, your sugar is 100% RoundUp Ready GMO – complete with 10ppm glyphosate. Contamination of your chard and table beets is inevitable. Learn more…
Read: http://www.non-gmoreport.com/articles/jun08/sugar_beet_industry_converts_to_gmo.php
GREG…..ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT HEADLINE…INSIGHTFUL, IRONIC, ICONIC
i had a friend in college, a brilliant young business man who did some import/export transactions with some turkish students…the produce was blonde turkish something…..
anyway, combining two other topic herein, is that cat genetically modified
Thanks! There — was that so hard?
You still call people “cat,” you beatnik?
not too often, usually just when i get together with frank, sammy and dean
So it is you, Joey Bishop!
could be Peter Lawford
I think Vern looks like a “cool cat”, don’t you?
Did somebody say Target???? Target rolling out organic, natural grocery brand | http://StarTribune.com http://www.startribune.com/business/210659481.html …” And GMO-free,
“When the state has the power to know everything about everyone, the integrity of the civil service is the only bulwark against men like Holder.”
Mark Steyn
The state doesn’t have the power to know everything about everyone.
But that’s a nice example of irrational hyperbole. Keep ’em coming!
The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
You know, you throw this up here as if you’re making an incredibly insightful point, but then what exactly is the point?
The Courts have made all kinds of decisions when it comes to search and seizure. Are you commenting on one of them? Any of them? Are you saying that the Government having access to a computer that knows when you make a phone call constitutes unreasonable search and seizure. Would you like to make your case for that?
Because the Fourth Amendment didn’t necessarily make your case for you.
Furthermore, most of the Justices that have watered down the Fourth Amendment, with the exception of Breyer, have been the Justices that Republicans have appointed and that skally most admires.
Does he not know this, or does he think that we don’t know it, or does he think that we do know it but will be too polite to point it out?
Like I mentioned in a previous post, I genuinely don’t believe he even stops to think about the implications of what he posts.
This NSA story is certainly creating some strange bedfellows. I mean, am I seeing Skally in agreement with the likes of Daniel Ellsberg?
One might need to be an expert in psychology to understand that dynamic. Or maybe one just needs to fully understand what crass ideological hucksterism will lead a person to say or do.
If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.
George Orwell
Welcome to the club that despises Dick Cheney.
Ah… Skally is discovering our favorite books from 8th grade!
FAST AND FURIOUS ! FAST AND FURIOUS ! Fast And Furious! Fast and furious. fast and fury…fast..’n..furious…fast……….
BENGHAZI ! BENGHAZI ! Benghazi ! Ben….ghazi…..ben…..gazi…….
Oh, never mind
Increasingly, it’s looking like we can add this one to the list;
IRS SCANDAL!! IRS SCANDAL! IRS Scandal!…IRs scandal…irs scandal…ir…sca..i…….
Once again, it’s our favorite car thief Darrell Issa, who is sounding the false alarm (he’s famous for them).
Like the old junky car in the parking structure that nobody pays attention to after they hear the horn blaring and seeing the lights flashing, Issa is once again crying wolf, and he’s being ignored.
There is no there, there.
Darrell Issa…….alarmist.
LOL. STEP BACK FROM … THE CONGRESSMAN.
Exactly !
He’s a one trick pony.
Kemal Ataturk was a bastard.
Loretta Sanchez mentioned by Hannity tonight – Loretta says that what we have learned recently of the actions of the NSA is just the “tip of the iceberg.”
Orwellian times: Snowden reveals NSA, FBI, CIA became United Stasi of America
The Voice of Russia –
http://english.ruvr.ru/news/2013_06_13/Orwellian-times-Snowden-reveals-NSA-FBI-CIA-became-United-Stasi-of-America-2117/