I wasn't aware of the political manipulation to which UNCTUOUS refers and it's a worry to contemplate the degeneration of the Turkish establishment from secular government to medieval ignorance and repression.
For some years I have thought that we are heading for a hot confrontation between the liberal and largely free speaking west and the religious zealots of the world who, like all their ilk no matter what their religion, feel that god demands that they fight against the unbeliever.
Are we prepared for such a war? Can a secular, agnostic or atheist society triumph over a society driven by religious faith?
Abraham/Buddha/Christ/Mohammed knows! but we'd better start getting mentally prepared and planning for it.
The vast majority are not focussed on fundamentalism; I remember a Muslim girl on our crew who bought a tiger-eye cross to take back to a Middle-Eastern Christian friend. She operated in and out of Saudi Arabia a few times with it in her baggage; don't think she realised what the Wahabi reaction would have been if it had been discovered
Those who just want to come quietly home from temple/church/mosque and get on with their lives will suffer with the extremists and so will also become polarised.
God I'm depressed
Just joking
(about being depressed, that is)