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Mehmet Ali Birand Today, I place myself in Hrant Dink's shoes. I think like him. I share his opinions. He was a person whose sole aim was to bring Turks and Armenians closer. He was as Turkish as he was Armenian. He loved his roots and he loved his country. He never went to extremes.

Oots and he loved his country. He never went to extremes. Murdering Dink means being an enemy of Turkey. I am sure some statements will be released. They will talk about a murder committed by an insane individual. No gentlemen. That's not true. We all know who is responsible for this murder: Those who hate Armenians, those who flood the streets at every opportunity to hunt Armenians and those who raid exhibitions on Armenians. Those who try to spread anti-Armenian propaganda. These people are the real culprits. Hrant Dink symbolized tolerance. Those who shot at him have no idea that they also shot at Turkey. Just wait and see how this will resonate outside. United States, France and other European countries will send proposals on the Armenians genocide and will just rush them through. Turkey will be blamed for everything. Newspapers will write about how Turkish people could not tolerate a liberal journalist of Armenian origin. Can there be any greater harm to our country? Shame on them. Hrant Dink will continue to live in our hearts.
Don't play the war drums: Our biggest misfortune is that we are in a pre-election period. Our politicians are playing one of the most dangerous games over Kirkuk and northern Iraq just to look cute to their constituents. We are implying we will use military force if we are not satisfied on the Kirkuk issue, if outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) forces on Kandil Mountain are not dispersed and if an independent Kurdistan is formed in northern Iraq. We are not saying, “We will do it.” We are just implying that. We are inciting the public. The government appears to want to direct everyone's attention to matters outside the country. There is a constant clatter of statements being released. One day Washington is on the receiving end and on the other Kurdish leaders. The opposition is incomprehensibly irresponsible. The Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) are trying to incite the government. However, these same opposition parties were campaigning against sending troops to Iraq before the U.S. invasion. Now, they are trying to incite the government into sending troops. “Look at them. They are scared of sending troops,” is what they say. The only political leader that doesn't play these cheap tricks is True Path Party (DYP) leader Mehmet Ağar. The media is something else. Almost everyone who has a column is in support of intervention. Thank God some of us have common sense. We are cooling the fire a bit but we are not enough. The individual who assessed the matter most sensibly was former National Intelligence Organization (MİT) chief Sönmez Köksal. He pointed out the dangers of any such intervention in northern Iraq. He suggested that Kurdish leaders amend their stance and Ankara quiet down its aggressive attitude. He said dialog should be the norm. Let's please end the way things are going. If it goes on like this, we will find ourselves caught in our own trap.

The world is changing but we can't see it: Our daily problems have become such an integral part of our lives that sometimes we fail to see what is happening right besides us. We lose ourselves in daily arguments. Sometimes we need a person to come and tell us what is happening. That is what Doğan Yayın Holding President Mehmet Ali Yalçındağ is doing. He shocks us a few times every year. He invites the important global players of media to see where everything is heading. He makes the world speak for two days. At this year's meeting, we all listened to how the world changed. German, British, U.S., Arab and Israeli guests showed us the facts of the world. Our whole imagination went wild for a few days.