Darwin is now completely banned in Turkey. What a shame.
(Note that the above link belongs to RichardDawkins.net, which is another banned website in Turkey. Therefore readers from Turkey can not access it)
According to the news, the cover of the biggest and oldest magazine called Bilim ve Teknik (Science and Tech) has been changed after the release has been completed and ready for printing, due to the decision made by the new Vice President of the institution: Omer Cebeci PhD. Omer Cebeci was just assigned to that position when the government decided to be in charge of all the scientific institutions.
Turkish government has passed the line - way too much - this time. After banning the web sites and cutting the funds from science, now they banned a complete issue of a scientific magazine by replacing the theory of evolution with another theory ; global warming. (Keep in mind that one of the biggest attacks of creationists in Turkey, is on evolution still being a theory, therefore unproven therefore should not exist..) People need to look up to the definition of science once more and carefully.
The government is taking the country back to the dark ages with all the censorship on Science and by increasing support on Islamic activities. What is their worry? Because they know. They know that against science, an Islamic country that they dream has no chance. And they are afraid. Remember what Bobby Henderson says : "I don't have a problem with religion. What I have a problem is religion posing as science".
Even Vatican is giving evolution a chance these days. Will Islam ever have it's turn? I don't think so. Especially if an imam becomes the president of a country, you see the consequences. I don't want to see Turkey Islamic, never ever. And now you know why.
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8 comments:
Wow! it's sad to see continued censorship in Turkey!
While I certainly don't agree with the actions of the Turkish government, one might argue that global warming is a more pertinent and timely issue to be discussing at this time in world history, rather than Darwin...what are your thoughts on that?
I never think or say that one aspect of science is more important than the other. Evolution, is always going to be a pertinent issue to be discussed b/c it is on-going as much as we are.(and religion should give up considering science as an enemy) Of course global warming is important, but don't miss the big picture here. March 2009 will be remembered as the Darwin's 200th birthday (and think about all the worldwide events) - yet the action of Turkey shown here, is a giant step to censor an already in-print magazine by pulling it back and replacing it's content in a hurry. I am against the censor, of any kind. Since I am a scientist, this type hurts more..
Believe me, an article about global warming can wait a month.
A scientific magazine must focus on scientific events. If in 2009 especially on March Darwin's 200 birthday is celebrated all around the world among the scientific communities and scientific magazines are publishing related articles then it is almost mandatory for a local scientific magazine to publish one of their own.
Evolution is, no matter what you believe or accept, out there. It may not be as exactly as Darwin's findings, and it doesn't have to be but still he is the man that put it together and published therefore made the idea of evolution known to all. Evolution is about change and adaptation.
Religion on the other hand, especially Islam, rejects change because otherwise the entire idea behind their belief system would collapse as they accept through belief that God created all, Adam was the first man and looked pretty much like what you see when you look at the mirror, and these contradict with science. When you say man and ape have something in common, you make Adam an ape. When you talk about 3+ million years old Lucy, you make people think and the more you think the less you believe.
Turkey is a country where not thinking but believing is promoted and only thinking will get you somewhere.
I don't know when but I believe science will eventually be the winner side in this deathmatch, or better, outsmart religion.
Anonymous;considering that there are very important discoveries being made in science and especially medicine that are aided by an understanding of evolution and evolutionary pathways, I don't think that there is any time that it should be censored.
An understanding of the effects of global warming also is intertwined with an understanding of the likely evolutionary responses of the biosphere to global climate change.
Thanks for putting this up. I just wrote about it too & put a link to your post.
AKP, the ruling party in Turkey, executes their hidden islamist agenda with a growing pace day by day. They paralysed almost every element of the secular system and the army is their biggest and final target. Leaving science in their hands is a shame.
Ali
I agree. I would never imagine Turkey coming to an end like this. I call it an end, end of the bright side of Turkey. Some reader emailed me saying that "secularism was the thing that Turks are mostly proud of", it is sad to see this going out of our hands. Will it, really? Are we really there?
The latest on this is here
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