'I Think Therefore I Am'

The terrorist attacks in Paris this past week have shocked the world. This past Sunday, more than a million people came together to participate in a two-mile march to show unity and solidarity with France and support for our shared values. Dozens of heads of state attended the “March of Unity” in Paris. David Cameron said to the press, “We will march together for our values.”
Ironically, some heads of state who attended the march are known for not allowing freedom of expression and press in their own countries. However, they have in common the possibility of terrorist attacks in their own countries. For example, the present Turkish government has come under attack from many European Union leaders in the last year or so for reacting harshly towards attempted organized protests and democratic ideas and values. Nowadays in Turkey, with political strife, polarization, growing authoritarianism, oppression and infighting, wars in neighboring countries and conflict at borders, terrorist attacks are a reality.
I remember an event which happened not that long ago in İstanbul in November 2003; the double bombings at the HSBC bank headquarters and the British Consulate that left over two dozen dead and hundreds injured. The Turkish authorities acted promptly to determine who carried out the attacks. In an interview with the BBC after the İstanbul bombings, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said there could be “no holding back” in confronting the “menace” of global terrorism.
Listening to the news coverage this past week has reminded me of the tragedy that occurred in 2008 in Mumbai, where terrorists carried out a series of coordinated attacks. This was an awful event.
India has always been a nation that fascinates me. India's population speaks over 50 different Indo-European languages, and many of these different languages are taught in Indian schools. Cultural and linguistic diversity is not seen as a threat.
I think a sort of “Great Game,” as Rudyard Kipling -- one of my favorite authors -- puts it, is happening today. In Kipling's time, he referred to such adventure with reference to India as the “Great Game,” where its members in covert fashion, starting in 1865, began to map and claim as much of India's uncharted northern region as quickly as possible by training native Indians for the task.
It is evident these days that terrorist cells are trying to gain control in Western nations and worldwide by creating fear through violent attacks, but it is not working.
Last week's attacks were frightening, but they seem to be having an effect quite opposite to what the terrorists had in mind. European heads of state are standing in solidarity.
The “game,” as described by Kipling's character Kim and his patron Mahbub Ali, is a dance of danger and skill performed on the outskirts of established authority. When everyone is dead, the Great Game is finished. Let's hope it doesn't come to that!
Numerous solidarity marches took place across Europe to defend European values and to show that true democratic nations will not live in fear of terrorists who show utter contempt for human life and freedom.
Voltaire is famous for his quote: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Perhaps you are familiar with the Latin words “gito, ergo sum.” The words “Je pense, donc je suis” were written on placards and held up proudly during the march of solidarity this past week. The saying means “I think, therefore I am.”
In Turkey, you may often hear expressions such as “alın yazısı” (writing on the forehead), the idea that your destiny is written on your forehead. Millions of people are grieving for the loss of lives in France this past weekend. Having the freedom to think for yourself and do as you please within the law is a privilege. It's true that when your time is up, it will be up, and there is nothing you can do to change it. But it is important to make each day count! Stand up for what you believe in.
The famous French philosopher and mathematician René Descartes, also known as the father of modern philosophy, said the words "I think, therefore I am.”

CHARLOTTE MCPHERSON (Cihan/Today's Zaman)