Sing out

So, Clay Aiken has come out of the closet. Clay is gay. In other news, the Pope is reported to be Catholic, and bears are alleged to be... Well, you get the picture. I'm happy for him that he feels able to do this. It's a shame it took so long, but then again, would he really have done so well in Idol if he had been out and proud? How would my friend Dan Fishback fare? He would be fabulous, and he would not be allowed to succeed (not that he would go for it, I'm sure, except as some new twist on performance art). Ironically, over in the 'conservative' and 'intolerant' Middle East, we have transsexual superstars such as Bülent Ersoy (see below) and Aderet. Let's hope for Clay and others in the US that audiences follow the Lebanese example, and concentrate on the music, rather than worrying about who is producing it.

Ostrich Syndrome

Transsexual diva Bülent Ersoy joins a long line of prominent public figures, including Orhan Pamuk, in undergoing prosecution for thoughtcrime. Criticizing the military is, as the BBC's Sarah Rainsford points out, a gamble. But what the military and its allies in the judiciary have to realize is that they have lost this one. It is no longer feasible, let alone desirable, to suppress all criticism of how the Turkish state has managed its Kurdish problem. If uncritical admiration of the military was ever established hegemonically, it has broken down by now. This is not in itself a problem. There is plenty to admire about the Turkish military. It should realize that criticism is not the enemy - that there are worse enemies, including complacency and paranoia. Let the Diva voice her concerns, let the writers examine the problem and propose solutions. The debate will be healthy. More to the point, it is already going on and is unlikely to be stopped now. So the best move is to get heads out of the sand and into the discussion.