If you live in Turkey, you've probably already noticed that the amount of internet you can access is getting smaller and smaller.
A recent BBC article explained quite nicely what seems to be going on. As we all know, YouTube has been blocked since 2008, but in the past month Google Maps, Analytics and many blogs hosted by Google-owned Blogger have also been blocked. Even some Google images embedded in some blogs and websites are blocked.
The reason seems to be two-fold: one has to do with "crimes against Ataturk" which forbids insulting or denigrating the country's first president, and the other has to do with the fact that Google does not pay taxes in Turkey (or really anywhere in Europe, except where it is based in Ireland).
In a nutshell: this is complete bullshit and I hate it.
There. Now that I've got that off my chest, I have to address what will happen in the event that Turkish Muse is blocked. I take great pains to not write anything that will get in too much trouble, but I'm working on a particularly sensational essay right now and I'm not sure how well it's going to go over.
If you are in Turkey and one day discover that this blog has been blocked, email me at barbara@turkishmuse.com or send me a message on Facebook so that I can alert you when I have the new blog set up.
If you are outside of Turkey, you will likely be unaware that the blog has been blocked and will only notice that it's been silent for a few weeks. If that happens, email me to ask what's up and I will give you the lowdown.
My Turkish Muse email is hosted by Google, but I have set up another email address and am forwarding all emails there, so that in the event that Google email is completely banned, I will still be able to read your emails.
I hope that this somewhat thought-out contingency plan will ease the confusion if we are banned. Now on with the regularly scheduled programming!
