Quote of the Day- Mustafa Kemal Ataturk

Today's quote of the day comes from the founder of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938) who was ironically born in what is now Greece, which has been Turkey's long-standing rival for many centuries. In fact, there has even been a brewhaha over Cyprus in recent weeks.

Here is Ataturk's quote:

"Unless a nation faces peril, war is murder."

Hapy Children's Day in Turkey

Saturday, April 23rd, will be Children's Day in Turkey. It was officially started in 1927 as an idea by the Republic of Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

For more info on the date and its origins, visit our sister blog "The Daily Vampire."

Here in America, many local Turkish-American associations, including the one in the Chicago metro area, have their own events for the occasion.

Dr. Mehmet Oz (known more commonly as Dr. Oz), Cenk Uygur of MSNBC, a fellow progressive Turkish-American and author/writer Elif Batuman whose work has appeared in "The New Yorker" are among the most notable of Turkish-Americans who were born in the United States. Uygur, who turned 41 last month, and I have birthdays that are two and a half weeks apart!