Turks protest Islamic government

There's some interesting news this afternoon from Turkey, which at one time was viewed as the model for Iraq and other Middle Eastern nations trying to make the transition from dictatorship to democracy. But an Islamic party has been recently successful--it's the ruling party in parliament. Not only is Turkey stategically located--Syria, Iran, Iraq, Georgia and Greece are among the nations it shares a border with--it is a member of NATO.

From AP:

At least 300,000 Turks waving the red national flag flooded central Istanbul on Sunday to demand the resignation of the government, saying the Islamic roots of Turkey's leaders threatened to destroy the country's modern foundations.

Like the protesters — who gathered for the second large anti-government demonstration in two weeks — Turkey's powerful secular military has accused Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of tolerating radical Islamic circles.

"They want to drag Turkey to the dark ages," said 63-year-old Ahmet Yurdakul, a retired government employee who attended the protest.

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