Thursday, July 01, 2004
And what does it all mean?
Three Dead in Bomb Attack on Turk Governor's Convoy
If I were a Turkish visitor to Los Angeles, worried about dying in a car crash, or being killed by gun violence, or convinced that I'd be an innocent victim in a conflagration of gang warfare (not to mention being "arrested" by the LAPD), I'd be able to post dozens of horror stories from any major paper in the US supporting my fears. K is fond of saying she's more likely to be killed driving to LAX than she is traveling in the Middle East.
(I can't count the number of times I've had to tell my relatives in England that it really is safe to visit the U.S., and that regardless of what they've heard, they probably won't be shot or mugged. (Doesn't help that one of them actually was mugged on his first night in New York, but you play the odds...))
I've been treating all this Turkey news pretty lightly, but when I step back and consider it -- nearly every day since I've started watching closely, there's been a bombing or some act of political violence. Hostages taken. (And released, hopefully) Now even earthquakes, to boot. But are things really getting worse in Turkey, or have I just started paying attention?
Is it just the age old problem: only bad things make the news? And only REALLY bad things make the international news-wires.
I think it is. But it has an interesting effect on people here in L.A.
As my departure date draws near, Turkey comes up more and more in conversation. And there seem to be two camps of opinion: people who've been to Turkey generally say something along the lines of: "It's such a great place for you. You'll love it. I can't believe you haven't been already." K's included in this group. She's been raving about Turkey for years.
Then there are those who haven't been - a larger data-pool for sure. The common response here is usually: "Turkey? Really? Are you sure? Bit of a hot-spot, isn't it? Bad timing. Watch out for yourself. Be careful." I got this today from my Dentist (Iranian), my cousin (Californian), my Allergist (Chinese-American), the nurse at the doctor's office (Australian), the clerk at the pharmacy (unknown), and even the security guard at my building (Nicaraguan).
For one reason or another, the subject came up casually ("No, I'll be gone for a month." "Really, why?" "Oh, going on a trip..." Etc) and ended with them convinced I was nuts.
When did this happen? When did Turkey become an irrational place to go?
Doesn't matter to me, really. I'm ecstatic to be going. Just odd how I keep having to defend the very notion of such a trip.
(Not to mention the fact that I'm still not sure if Turkey's part of the Middle East, or part of Europe. This seesm to matter to people, though. Guess it depends on who you ask. The few Turks I've asked say Europe. I think the French would disagree (shocker). I'm going with Europe. Why not...)
|
ReutersI'm beginning to think that all these doom-and-gloom posts hold a lesson: if you look closely enough at anywhere on earth, scary things are happening.
Friday, July 2, 2004; 2:43 AM
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Three people were killed and many injured on Friday in a bomb attack on a convoy carrying the governor of eastern Turkey's Van province, CNN Turk television reported.
State-run Anatolian news agency said a vehicle containing a bomb exploded on the route of Governor Hikmet Tan's convoy. No further details were immediately available.
If I were a Turkish visitor to Los Angeles, worried about dying in a car crash, or being killed by gun violence, or convinced that I'd be an innocent victim in a conflagration of gang warfare (not to mention being "arrested" by the LAPD), I'd be able to post dozens of horror stories from any major paper in the US supporting my fears. K is fond of saying she's more likely to be killed driving to LAX than she is traveling in the Middle East.
(I can't count the number of times I've had to tell my relatives in England that it really is safe to visit the U.S., and that regardless of what they've heard, they probably won't be shot or mugged. (Doesn't help that one of them actually was mugged on his first night in New York, but you play the odds...))
I've been treating all this Turkey news pretty lightly, but when I step back and consider it -- nearly every day since I've started watching closely, there's been a bombing or some act of political violence. Hostages taken. (And released, hopefully) Now even earthquakes, to boot. But are things really getting worse in Turkey, or have I just started paying attention?
Is it just the age old problem: only bad things make the news? And only REALLY bad things make the international news-wires.
I think it is. But it has an interesting effect on people here in L.A.
As my departure date draws near, Turkey comes up more and more in conversation. And there seem to be two camps of opinion: people who've been to Turkey generally say something along the lines of: "It's such a great place for you. You'll love it. I can't believe you haven't been already." K's included in this group. She's been raving about Turkey for years.
Then there are those who haven't been - a larger data-pool for sure. The common response here is usually: "Turkey? Really? Are you sure? Bit of a hot-spot, isn't it? Bad timing. Watch out for yourself. Be careful." I got this today from my Dentist (Iranian), my cousin (Californian), my Allergist (Chinese-American), the nurse at the doctor's office (Australian), the clerk at the pharmacy (unknown), and even the security guard at my building (Nicaraguan).
For one reason or another, the subject came up casually ("No, I'll be gone for a month." "Really, why?" "Oh, going on a trip..." Etc) and ended with them convinced I was nuts.
When did this happen? When did Turkey become an irrational place to go?
Doesn't matter to me, really. I'm ecstatic to be going. Just odd how I keep having to defend the very notion of such a trip.
(Not to mention the fact that I'm still not sure if Turkey's part of the Middle East, or part of Europe. This seesm to matter to people, though. Guess it depends on who you ask. The few Turks I've asked say Europe. I think the French would disagree (shocker). I'm going with Europe. Why not...)
|
