Did Markos Moulitsas sleep through “Lawrence of Arabia”?
I have to admit I wasn’t terribly surprised when I read Rand Simberg’s post (via Glenn) reporting that Markos Moulitsas got Turks confused as Arabs on This Week. Markos has never struck me as the most literate sort, his expletive-laden writing style reminiscent of the text messages of a self-important seventh grader. So I wouldn’t be surprised if Markos has never read Seven Pillars of Wisdom, but he surely must have seen Lawrence of Arabia at some point.
Still, let’s give the guy a break. It’s a long movie and maybe he fell asleep during the part about the Turks. And also let’s give Markos a break about this absurd comment he made on the show about the Israelis: “They alienated an important Arab ally in Turkey, and they put the United States in a really difficult position.” Important ally? Well, we all know Markos would never read the Wall Street Journal. Nothing but propaganda.
But in the interest of his education, I will provide for Markos this classic scene from Lawrence, because for Markos “nothing is [indeed] written.” Unfortunately, the meaning isn’t quite the same in this case as the movie.
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Markos Moulitsas candidly admitted a few years ago that he read few books. He is not a spring chicken. The dude may look young— but is actually 38 years old. Moulitsas is intellectually lazy. This is the norm of the Daily Kos types. These shallow human beings congratulate each other on their supposed brilliant intellects. There is, however, simply little evidence that this is indeed the case. They are also unaware that their university credentials were obtained during an age of rapidly decreasing standards.
Moulitsas is intellectually lazy.
Exactly. The Daily Kos crowd acts as if snark can replace hard work.
Markos, Ariana Huffington, Matthew Iglesias, Kevin Drum now scribbling for Mother Jones, Markos’ pal Atrios, another lefty blogger, and other too numerous to name: a pack of pretentious, self regarding, shallow jerks who clog the internet like plaque in the arteries.
Actually, I have to say a word in defense of Kevin Drum. I followed his blog from the time he was Calpundit. He is actually very smart and pretty fair even though he is a lefty. Back before the CBS fiasco on Bush’s military record, Drum did a lengthy study of the story and concluded it was bogus. I was impressed. He wanted it to be true but was too honest to lie about it. I don’t agree with him on anything but respect his integrity. The others are dopes. Arianna married a gay rich man and now is a big wheel in lefty circles although, when she was on the make, she was a Republican. She is phony through and through.
Oh, and Turkey is NOT an ally and the sooner we realize that, the better. We don’t need another embassy hostage crisis.
Even worse: he is of half-Greek descent. For someone with a Greek background to confuse Turks with any other ethnic group is embarassing.
Exactly. Worse yet, Moulitsas’ nickname, “Kos,” appears to be derived from the Greek island of Kos — which was under Ottoman/Turkish rule from the 16th century until Greece gained independence from the Ottoman Turks in 1912-13.
It’s hard to believe that he can’t differentiate Arabs from Turks. Let’s hope he can differentiate Sunnis from the Shia, as that was the litmus test for having serious foreign policy chops cited by candidate Barack Obama in 2008 — remember Obama said that it would be a welcome change to have a president who knew the difference between Sunnis and Shiites.
Fortunately for Mr. Moulitsas, being a high-profile (though not as popular as he was circa 2003-06) mouthpiece of the Left inoculates him from criticism/scrutiny over the unfortunate (i.e., dumb) things he occasionally says. In our culture, Left wing = “smart,” “sophisticated,” “educated,” “erudite,” “enlightened.” That’s why serially insecure social climbers with little understanding of the way the world really works can be counted on to parrot Left wing dogma — it gives them instant social proof as being “smart”/”sophisticated”/”educated.”
The kids in my 9th grade geography class know the differences between Arabs, Turks, and Persians so I won’t cut Markos any slack. The harder question is why Erdogan is siding with Arab terrorists over longtime ally Israel. Mustafa Kemal (aka Ataturk) regarded the Arabs as more trouble than they were worth. He established the Turkish Republic for the Turks, expelled the Jews, Armenians, and Greeks, and dispersed the Kurds. I hope Mark Steyn is wrong about the Anatolian Turks’ desire to replace modern, secular Turkey with an Islamic republic. What a giant step backward that would be!
Unfortunately, what Steyn describes has been going on for some time, for the better part of this decade and getting worse. Steyn is at least partly correct – and it’s frightening. I am certain the tilt toward the Arab world shown by Obama has only exacerbated the situation. A weakened US encourages the Turkish Islamists and so forth.
What I do not understand are Turkish motives: are they seeking an alliance with Iran against the West, and to restore Turkish prestige and influence in the Muslim world, or seeking in the long term to challenge Iran for dominant role in the ME. I would think that Sunni Turks would be natural rivals to Shia Persians.
Turkish Islamists are also apparently having more children than their more secular counterparts. The low birth rate of Western elites is frightening.
“This Week” is on ABC. Its Fox counterpart is “Fox News Sunday.”
Jeez, Roger, there you go alienating a major print media ally.
No kidding, ak, although I don’t feel as if I have any allies, especially when making blunders like that.
Maybe Raoger Ailes whispered in Jake Tapper’s ear. “Hey, Jake a lot of people read the Daily Kos”. Just trying to rescue the point :>)
Even worse: he is of half-Greek descent. For someone with a Greek background to confuse Turks with any other ethnic group is embarassing.
That was my first thought. Thinking Iranians are Arabs is bad but I can sort of understand. For someone of Greek background to think Turks are Arabs is astonishing. Yet he’s probably the kind of leftist who makes fun of Bush for saying “Grecians”.
One of my on-going post 9-11 gags at the Daily Brief used to be that from now on, when watching “Lawrence of Arabia” that I would cheer for the Turks.
Thanks, Rayyip Erdogan (hey, can we call you Yippy now, like a small and incontinent Chihuahua?) that’s another nice line that you’ve now ruined!
Agree – Markos being of Greek descent, should have known the difference. I lived in Greece, courtesy of the USAF in the early 80′s, and the Greek friends that I had were so reflexively antagonistic towards all things Turkish… I loved Greece, and living there, so much that I was always put off asking for an assignment to Turkey…
In defense of the intellectually lazy: I own “Seven Pillars of Wisdom.” I’ve attempted to read “Seven Pillars of Wisdom.” But brother, I don’t think anybody could finish “Seven Pillars of Wisdom.” Reading James Joyce is an exercise in clarity and efficiency by comparison.
In any case, as long as Arabs fight tribe against tribe, they will remain a little people, a silly people–greedy, barbarous and cruel.
Who knew Robert Bolt could sum it up so well, 50 years ago?
“Seven Pillars of Wisdom” is unreadable, one step down from “Atlas Shrugged”.
Well Jim, I have read “Seven Pillars of Wisdom”. I have also read Jeremy Wilson’s 1,000 plus page biography of Lawrence. In fact, I understand that the original subscription text of “Seven Pillars” is now available, and I have been searching for a copy. Seven Pillars is indeed a difficult read. It requires in many places a level of concentration that casual reading simply does not provide. It is one of the most important pieces of literature in the English language. In my case, it was also a springboard for further study of the history of the Middle East.
Leave it to a bunch of provincials to criticize an Oxfordshire squire. You don’t read the bloody thing; you’re expected to luxuriate in the decadent quality of the prose! Try reading it dressed in a silk robe with a pipe of Turkish tobacco and a tumbler of scotch (a bath servant of either sex is optional). This is what happens when you put a printing press in the hands of commoners. Bloody hell.
I managed to wade through the entire thing and thought it worthwhile. [At the time I was in the Army Reserves wondering whether I'd be called up for the 1990 Gulf War.]
Remember Lawrence saying in the intro that he used various English versions of Arab names, and made no apology for doing so. Of course that made it more difficult to figure out what was going on.
Different strokes, eh. Seven Pillars was a Doubleday Book Club selection. I read it once very young, then around age 21, enjoyed it both times. I was visiting relatives in Texas and impressed my uncle when I predicted that King Faisal’s murder would turn about to be about religion, the great obsession of Arabs. The movie was the comic book version of the book.
Molitsas is a simple minded, leftist jerk. I have no doubt that he is clueless when it comes to knowing the difference between an Arab and a Turk.
But the IslamoFascist takeover of what was once a secular Turkey is no joking matter. However, if Turkey decides to take on Israel they will get more than a bloody lip.
Turkey and Israel had a long time working relationship between their militaries. Since the Islamofascist takeover of the government this is no longer the case.
Not only is Kos part Greek, but he also was in the Army when the Turks were “on our side” under NATO. Steyn has a point that Erdogen is playing internal to the opponents of Ataturks anti-islamist Turkey, and you are right that he (and his anti-US tribe) are totally re-writing the history of WW1 in the ME.
Markos did far better when the talk came around to Andre Gallaraga’s perfect game. Like Keith Olbermann, he’d probably be better off and cause himself far less embarrassment by just staying away from television and hoping major league baseball will give him a guest blog, like they did with Keith (who’s only partially insane over there, as opposed to his MSNBC program).
For Markos all those ‘not-Jews’ types look alike.
Arab or not, Turkey is a very important American ally.
You’re so right, #13. Pajamas Media is turning another of those nefarious Armenian Front Groups that spend all their time maligning the Turks over some phony genocide in 1915. As any Kurd will tell you, the Turks are the best ally any man could have. Remember Midnight Express? They said that was Turkey but they shot it in Romania. Keep up the great posts.
“phony genocide”????????
I hope you were trying (and failing…) to be sarcastic- otherwise, please crawl back under your rock…
Turkey ceased being an ally of the United States when they refused transit to the 4th-ID in 2003!
I’ve read “Seven Pillars of Wisdom”. It’s not that difficult. We’re not talking about “Piers Ploughman” for God’s sake.
About a hundred pages in I realized that Lawrence’s love for the the Arab ideal of Manhood, personified by the lithe bodies of young Arab men was a bit . . . unsettling. Not that there is anything wrong with that!
Well, you see, Lawrence had … issues.
Issues?
Issues – he had a lifetime subscription and a shelf of old bound copies, I am thinking!
Many decades of secular rule in Turkey have failed to keep islamism at bay. Turkey was “secular” only as long as a powerful military ‘shadow government’ called the shots, and an ally to the U.S. only as long as it served their interests. With Erdogan in power, the military establishment has been severely weakened (the arrests for the ‘Ergenekon plot’ were simply an excuse to get rid of the opposition), and with a weak U.S. foreign policy from Obama & Clinton, it is more beneficial for the Turks to turn to the East…
Don’t forget, there are three main islamic ‘candidates’ (yeah, Lost…) for the resurrection of the Caliphate: the Saudis (Bin Laden – al Qaeda), Iran, and now Turkey put their chip into play – they are, after all, the ones that abolished the last Caliphate (Kemal Ataturk in 1924). They may appear to support each-other, but ultimately want the caliphate for themselves…
Unless the West wakes up soon, this will not end well…
Just to point that Kos(Coo in Italian) island went to Italy up until end of Second World War.
“Turkey is a very important American ally.”
No it is not. America shouldn’t have allies that their population is fanatically against and invent, imagine or dream of every conspiracy theories,have TV movies that show anti American hating at same time love and tolerate American enemies or in another words encourage them. The end is always the same, sooner or later it will end badly.
Maybe “Kos” is a dhimmi?
Perto, why is Turkey a very important American ally? You state it as if it were obvious, but don’t provide any supporting case. Turkey was importantish when the main US rival was the Soviet Union. Now, Turkey is geopolitically completely unimportant. The invasion of Iraq in 2003 proved that. Not only did Turkey not allow US flyover and pass-through access, they also used the opportunity to attack Kurds in Iraq. Turkey has an extremely poor, extremely young, very badly educated population. Just the people you need for warfare.
If I were the state Department, I ‘d put them on my ‘Watch with alarm’ list.
“Perto, why is Turkey a very important American ally?”
For one thing, Turkey sends troops to Afghanistan to help out the cause.
Turkey finds it convenient to send troops to Afghanistan so that the U.S. will pay for their “advanced infantry combat training”.
A couple of points…
T.S.: Greece became independent in 1830 with the help of France, Britain, and Russia. However, Turkey hung on to northern Greece and the Aegean islands till 1912-1913. In 1912, the Dodecanese islands (including Kos) were seized by Italy; Greece did not get them till after World War II.
AD: Ironically, Erdogan and the AK agreed to 4th ID’s passage, but the Turkish parliament voted it down. The opposition was all the “secular” parties and a few AK bolters. The vote was heavily lobbied by French representatives, who said that if Turkey let 4th ID through, France would never let them join the EU.
Dmitris: Ishkebibble is being sarcastic…
The Indictment of Markos C. Alberto Moulitsas ZÚÑIGA (MAMZ) by Justice and History (Updated with Additional Information and Counts)