Stop waiting for new coups
I look around and see that everyone is involved in a literature of coup d’états. They ask, “Will there be new coups?” Or “How can new coups be prevented?” There are people who discreetly expect new coups to happen.
We can never be sure of ourselves. It is only very few people who could stand up and say, “Come on, there will never be coups any more. If anybody wanted to attempt it, they would have to face us.”
There is a continuous concern. There are still people who have not digested what we have experienced so far and who cannot get used to the changing Turkey. We still come across people who say in commentaries and in TV debates, “The military is planning an ambush. When the time comes, they will revolt.”
I have some news for them.
The military is closely monitoring the change and the transformation in Turkey. They see that we are in an era when even those coups that happened years ago are being accounted for. They are aware of the price officers are paying for expressing their concerns about the state of affairs, even when they did not have any intention of staging a coup.
The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) is aware that it has paid a huge price for becoming involved in national politics in the past. Moreover, it sees that today’s Turkey cannot be transformed into a military post as easily as it was before. Maybe some members are still dreaming of coups, but it would be impossible for them to overcome the General Staff and top-level commanders.
Let’s not forget: This country is no longer a country where there is one radio and one television channel, closed to the outside world, and where the majority of the population will run back to their homes and hide after hearing the first loud noise. It is now impossible to force this society to do anything.
Despite all its drawbacks and the terrorist acts of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), no coup will happen in today’s Turkey.
We know everything
This society has expertise in every field. Everyone knows everything very well.
Everyone knows how to practice journalism. How do they know this so well? From politicians to the military, from academic to members of the judiciary, everyone is a journalist now. This is not limited to the media.
We are all each individually a great football manager. We know very well which players should be substituted and when. All the sports writers know this better than coaches Fatih Terim or Aykut Kocaman.
When it comes to the subject of terrorism, the situation becomes even more dramatic. We also all know how to fight terrorism.
No one listens to experts in the field. We also can manage the economy better.
Too many cooks spoil the broth.
Journalism will be tried today
For as long I can remember, be it politicians, the military or the judiciary, everyone has been complaining about journalists. It is always those outside the profession that know the profession better.
Everyone has an opinion on journalism; however, politicians stand on a different platform. They think differently depending on whether they are in the opposition or they have become the government. This way or that way, they always complain.
Today, journalism is being tried. There is an Oda TV hearing. Did Soner Yalçın and his friends only practice journalism, or were they involved in a conspiracy to topple the government?
I believe in absolute freedom of thought for journalists unless they encourage arms and terrorism. For this reason, I take sides. For this reason, I pay a great deal of attention to the Oda TV hearing.