Hungarian PM Viktor Orban ('Viktator') is set to win 3rd term today. Here is an extensive piece about Hungary, with remarks by Kim Lane Scheppele, Zslot Enyadi, @laszloan, Erika Harris, @peterkreko, @szekyjanos, Saling Gergo, and Michal Kowalczyk theglobepost.com/2018/04/06/201…
@laszloan@peterkreko@szekyjanos Orban won 49 percent of votes, but his party will get nearly 70 percent of parliamentary seats. How is that possible?
After Orban won elections in 2010, he changed the constitution, electoral laws and significantly increased his party's disproportionate representation through gerrymandering. In the 21st century, autocracies are built through laws, and manipulation. Not by tanks.
Orban refashioned institutions in Hungary that essentially favor the most popular party. He keeps the opposition divided and employs a divisive rhetoric to steal far-right Jobbik's thunder.
He introduced winner-takes-all majoritarian electoral system that basically pushes out smaller parties. The state media has become a government mouthpiece and other private networks are purchased by his oligarchs.
He undermines civil society groups and fans the flames of anti-Semitism. Yesterday's election was the last chance to correct Hungary's course. It will instead become an inspiration for Poland and Czech Republic, as well as for other far-right groups across Europe.
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Study shows that a simple act of asking yourself whether you will remember something significantly improves the odds that you will remember, in some cases by as much as 50 percent. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21443325/
8 experiments revealed that pronouncing words aloud, instead of reading them silently, improves explicit memory.
Another study shows rehearsing content of events, like replaying an event in your mind, going over what someone said in a meeting, or mentally mapping out a series of steps, dramatically boosts memory consolidation. jneurosci.org/content/35/43/…
Erdogan is arguably one of the history’s most cunning politicians. He is such a magician that Turkish opposition falls for his tricks every single time.
Nearly a decade ago, Erdogan tried to limit alcohol sale late at night, introducing restrictions that were not necessarily harsher than the ones in US. Instead of justifying it with reasonable arguments, he insulted Ataturk & said laws “created by two drunks” aren’t respectable.
The opposition was furious. Now they started defending being “drunk” in a Muslim-majority nation, granting Erdogan unparalleled political fodder in his quest to trap the opposition. He buried the opposition with just two incendiary words.
Just like the militaries of Egypt, Pakistan, Thailand, Burma etc., Turkish military had been the fundamental tenet of the establishment that wanted to create a society that were Sunni (No Alawites/Shia), secular (No conservatives) and Turk (no Kurds or other nationalities).
Every time there was a threat to the Turkish state, either through communism or Islamism, the military acted. It is in the army’s DNA to “protect” the nation as a Sunni, secular and Turkish entity. Those genes still exist in the military.
Every time things “went wrong”, the military contemplated the possibility of overthrowing the government. In the mid-1990s (against Islamist govt), in 2003 (to protest Annan’s Cyprus plan), in 2007 (against Erdogan) and in 2016 (against Erdogan).
Azerbaijani Presidents signs a deal that ensures the surrender of Armenian forces and the end of the war in Karabakh. Azerbaijani president says it is a 'historic day' and 'very happy' over the agreement.
Armenia agrees to surrender the province of Aghdam to Azerbaijan by November 20.
Russian peacekeepers will be deployed to Lachin corridor that will ensure the link between Karabakh Armenians and Armenia for 5 years.
A lot of people have been asking me about the latest flare-up between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Here is what happened and why:
Let me start with a little background. Throughout the history, Armenians were scattered around the region in the Middle East and South Caucasus, including eastern Turkey, Iran, Syria, Lebanon and some lands in South Caucasus.
Ironically, today's Armenia, including its current capital Yerevan were predominantly populated by Muslim Turks, or Azerbaijanis. After twin Iran-Russia wars in the early 1800s, the demographic landscape in the South Caucasus had been changed significantly.
Many people keep asking me what is going on regarding Trump-Erdogan meeting and why Trump seems like taking a step back in imposing sanctions on Turkey over its purchase of Russian S400 systems. Here is what's happening:
Almost ten years ago, Turkey started negotiations with U.S. and European defense contractors to buy air defense systems to bolster its three-tiered Mediterranean air defense system and integrate into NATO's existing ones.
Around this time, several pro-Iranian groups in Turkey organized a humanitarian aid flotilla to confront Israel's blockade of Gaza. The bloody brawl on Mavi Marmara ship pitted Turkey and Israel against each other for many years to come.