The simple question asked of Can Baba upon his return from Germany reveals not merely a difference in civilization, but a deep chasm in mindset:
“What did you think of Germany?”
The answer is profane, but the diagnosis is clear:
“Everything is so perfect that it’s confusing.”
This sentence sums up Turkey’s long historical trauma. For us, order is unsettling, while chaos is comforting. Things going smoothly is considered an exception, while things falling apart is seen as the norm. There is a “comfort of chaos” ingrained in our collective subconscious; spanning a historical trajectory from the 19th-century Tanzimat reforms, through the centralized structures of the single-party era, to the flexible state ideology of post-1980 neoliberal policies, this habit has been passed down from generation to generation as a cultural reflex.
And this is precisely where the tragedy begins: Order does not seem natural to us; it is surprising, even suspicious. Chaos, on the other hand, is ordinary; it has been normalized. This is why the proper functioning of the state unsettles people. Because habits have been shaped to accept chaotic forms of governance as “normal.”.
The Normalization of Chaos and a State of Constant Anxiety
In Turkey, chaos is not a disruption but the system itself. Uncertainty is not temporary; it is permanent. “Making do” is not a temporary solution; it is a national way of life. The literature on social psychology reveals that individuals constantly exposed to uncertainty develop a hyper-vigilant and anxious state of mind. A society that fears to laugh and views the good with suspicion remains on high alert against unexpected crises. Because it knows: What exists today may not exist tomorrow; a system functioning today may collapse tomorrow due to an arbitrary decision. This psychosocial structure is a trauma not only for individuals but also for the collective unconscious.
Comment: This is not a moral failing; it is a trauma inflicted by the state. Society cannot be blamed; the state itself is to blame. When a citizen is deprived of a secure state apparatus, they are forced to feel anxiety; anger and intolerance become natural reflexes.
Half-Hearted Effort, Half-Hearted Commitment, and Learned Helplessness
You see this even when you’re buying pastries at the bakery in the morning: The pastries labeled “cheese-filled” contain no cheese; the ayran is watered down; the road is full of potholes; the elevator isn’t working. And the common phrase used to describe this:
“What can you do? This is Turkey.”
From the perspective of Martin Seligman’s theory of learned helplessness, individuals become passive when constantly exposed to setbacks they cannot control. In Turkey, this situation is a direct result of the state constantly imposing a half-life on its citizens. Crime is vague, authority is unclear, and accountability remains unaddressed. The state’s half-hearted approach is wearing down society not only economically and legally but also psychologically.
Comment: This is a strategy of social disempowerment. Whether consciously or unconsciously, the state strengthens its control mechanisms by failing to instill trust in its citizens, thereby keeping them constantly on edge and suspicious.
Incompetence and Institutional Decay
The fundamental principle of the modern state is this: People do not act according to the rules; rather, the rules act according to people. In Turkey, however, the opposite is true: The rules are flexible, while people are fixed. Those with connections get ahead, while those without are weeded out. Knowledge, hard work, and talent are powerless in the face of favoritism.
Within the framework of Weber’s theory of bureaucracy, the state’s inability to function as a trust-generating entity places citizens in a state of constant suspicion. Citizens are no longer subjects who can claim their rights, but rather become suspects subject to the state’s arbitrariness.
Comment: This decay cannot be explained solely by individual incompetence. It is an institutional problem, a political choice, and an ideological stance. While the state’s primary duty is to instill confidence, in Turkey the state is instilling anxiety.
Education: Responsible Spaying and Neutering
In the education system, school buildings are inadequate, teachers are under pressure, and the curriculum is ideologically driven. Instead of learning, students memorize; instead of asking questions, they remain silent.
Paulo Freire’s critique of “rote learning” captures the essence of the system in Turkey: preventing society from thinking. The thinking, questioning individual is the greatest threat to the regime of half-measures. The deliberate stifling of education leads society to develop a psychologically submissive and anxious profile.
Comment: The state preemptively suppresses the opposition of the future through education. This system is a political choice aimed at controlling not only the present but also the future.
Health: Managing Human Life
The healthcare system is marketed as a success story; but in reality, rather than improving people’s lives, it merely manages them. Doctors are burned out, patients are waiting in the hallways, and there is a shortage of medications.
The sociology of health demonstrates that inequalities in access to healthcare generate stress, anxiety, and helplessness in individuals. In Turkey, being a patient is a social risk factor; the individual becomes an object of the health system’s arbitrary structure.
Comment: Health policies prioritize the government’s budget over citizens’ right to life. Human life has been reduced to a tool of governance.
Unemployment and the Economy as a Political Tool
There are millions of unemployed people, and hundreds of billions of lira sitting in funds; yet there are no jobs. The issue here isn’t employment—it’s the control mechanism. The young unemployed population is politically managed by being left without a future.
Karl Marx’s theory of alienation explains how, in the context of unemployment and economic inequality, individuals are cut off from both production and a sense of social belonging. In Turkey, unemployment is not merely an economic condition; it is a systematic tool of social oppression.
Comment: Unemployment is not merely a loss of income; it is the systematic erosion of dignity and self-esteem. The potential for social unrest is a political consequence of how this deficiency is managed.
Economy: The Institutionalization of Inequality
Taxation is unfair, income distribution is skewed, and the cost of living is high. This is not a crisis; it is the system itself. The rich are protected, while the poor are squeezed. Social anthropology reveals that this situation is a hierarchical structure that is deliberately maintained.
Comment: Economic inequality is a tool of social control. The absence of justice is not a matter of order, but a strategic choice of those in power.
Politics: Democracy Without the People
Politics has become disconnected from the people. The ruling party is in its own world, and the opposition is preoccupied with its own agenda. The people are invisible. Democracy has become dysfunctional because of the people’s invisibility; it exists in name only, but in reality, it no longer exists.
Citizens are remembered only during election season, but forgotten once the polls close. Social rights are buried behind empty promises.
Comment: Democracy is a mere formality; it lacks substance. The political system guarantees the continuity of power, not the people’s demands.
You Can’t Build a Whole Country with Half-People
If the government is only half-functioning, if institutions are only half-operational, if services are only half-provided, then people in that country live only half a life—with half a hope, half a sense of security, and half a vision of the future.
This state of incompleteness can no longer be sustained. This country cannot be governed with half a pastry, half a measure of justice, or half a conscience.
We want a full life now. This is not a request, but a necessity. This is not a plea for mercy, but a fight for our rights.
Because incomplete systems leave society incomplete; a society left incomplete will sooner or later demand accountability.
Comment: If the state continues to settle for half-measures, it will produce half-people; and half-people cannot accept a half-future. History is full of examples of this: flawed systems eventually face social upheaval.