Talkin' Turkey

Today Barack Obama made the first trip to a Muslim nation in eight years that didn't involve us waking up one morning and finding out the President went overseas in absolute secrecy in order to not be subject to rocket attacks and planned bombings, and involves a meeting with a Muslim leader that for the first time in years does not have the Muslim leader taking orders or watching the President hang out with the troops that are stationed inside his country. President Obama also wants to make it absolutely clear that despite evidence to the contrary and statements from he previous administration, we are not, repeat not, at war with all Muslims. We also hate North Korea too.

Urging a greater partnership with the Islamic world in an address to the Turkish parliament, Obama called the country an important U.S. ally in many areas, including the fight against terrorism. He devoted much of his speech to urging a greater bond between Americans and Muslims, portraying terrorist groups such as al Qaida as extremists who do not represent the vast majority of Muslims.

"Let me say this as clearly as I can," Obama said. "The United States is not and never will be at war with Islam. In fact, our partnership with the Muslim world is critical ... in rolling back a fringe ideology that people of all faiths reject."

The U.S. president is trying to mend fences with a Muslim world that felt it had been blamed by America for the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

In fairness to us, we only thought that because it was mostly true. Unsurprisingly this trip to Turkey is fraught with perils, including not mentioning a century old genocide against Armenians, not rubbing in the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, supporting Turkey's fight against whatever the PKK is, and repeated assertions that "No, no no. It's those Muslims to the south of your country we don't like. You're the good Muslims: The Tangentially European Muslims."

Why is Turkey important? One: they have the second largest army in NATO and Obama has to be able to mention that a few times in front of Turkish leaders without drooling or moving plastic Turkish armies around on a Iraq battle map to prove he isn't like the last guy. Two: if we want to show the Muslim world we care and show a US President hob-knobbing with Muslim leaders, Turkey or North Africa are as close as Obama can get to appearing in public without a truly 'South American dictator' level police presence. So as long as Obama keeps it under control, the trip should rate as a victory. Which, for those of you scoring at home, raises our record in the Middle East relations to Cincinnati Bengals/Oakland Raiders territory.