Turkey

The coverage of the unfortunate incident in the seas near Gaza has focused thus far on whether Israel acted appropriately, with much international condemnation predictably alleging she did not. What is ignored in the typical focus on Israel as the aggressor in any conflict in that part of the world is whether Turkey was justified in what may turn our to be an at least unofficially sanctioned act of provocation. I have read several reports that speculate that Israel's action in enforcing its blockade of Gaza has endangered its relationship with its "closest" friend in the region.

When I was a kid back in the 1970s, my postal manager father told me about the post office in Baltimore where the mail didn't get delivered. It was a laid-back sort of place, where dozens of postal employees with the work ethic of Seinfeld's notorious Newman whiled away the hours "RIP" (retired in place) until officially retiring from public service. Yet in some ways that post office was the most important one in town. Without that one postal station, mail delivery all over Baltimore would have suffered.

To steal a theme from Ronald Reagan, "It is Thanksgiving again in America," and we are in for a miserable holiday. You know the kind of holiday I'm talking about. Where manners and tradition require you to break bread with people who irritate the living daylights out of you, including the two or three who can be counted on to do something so unpleasant as to make the day dreadfully memorable. The kind of holiday where divorces and remarriages and loans that never got paid back and thank-you notes that were never sent create a seething undercurrent that is as ready to bubble to the surface as the fat under the turkey's skin.

Several lacrosse stars held a youth clinic Thursday in Newtown, Conn., in the wake of a shooting that killed 20 children and six adults Dec. 14 at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Players who took part in the clinic are sponsored by Brine/Warrior and included former Chesapeake Bayhawk and Lacrosse Hall of Famer Mark Millon , Eric Lusby (Loyola University), Kyle Hartzell (Salisbury, CCBC-Essex), Matt Bocklet (Johns Hopkins), Steven Brooks (Bayhawks) and Jeremy Sieverts (Maryland, McDonogh)

Here are some post-Thanksgiving Day leftovers of local lingo, Baltimore bits, Maryland memos and financial items from beyond the Beltway:LOCAL LINGO: "Devastation of small-capitalization stocks has been the broadest in recent history; from its high point the NASDAQ index is down more than 30 percent vs. S&P 500-index off 18 percent since midyear." (Smith Barney via Rick Faby) . . . "The most sobering current condition is that of the federal government. Historically, federal coffers were full when a slowdown arrived, cushioning bumps when entitlement payouts rose and tax revenues fell.

Use of Turkish air bases allows U.S. bombers instant access to targets in northern Iraq from safe air space, without having to cross all of defended Iraq first. The Turkish parliament's granting of this right on the second day of the war helped the U.S. aerial campaign, and showed that Turkey has identified the winner and wishes to be found on the safe side.This action, pressed by President Turgut Ozal and opposed by the opposition on grounds of endangering the country, follows Turkey's closure of oil pipelines to Iraq in August.

Few political leaders have had such a clear vision of their nation's place in a changing world as President Turgut Ozal of Turkey. It was no accident that his death of a heart attack Saturday, at age 66, came just after an arduous 12-day tour of five republics in Central Asia with Islamic populations and Soviet pasts. His death leaves a void for Turkey and the free world.Mr. Ozal came to the fore as a politician of the 1980s, the first elected prime minister after a military regime. He championed democracy, secularism and the free market.

Turkey can kill the terrorist Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) with firmness toward it and kindness toward Kurds. This it seemed to be doing when the late Turgut Ozal was president and increased Kurdish cultural rights in 1991, and when the PKK called a cease-fire last March. Several things happened. The popularity of PKK went down; Mr. Ozal died; Turkish security forces brutally attacked PKK suspects in southeastern Turkey. The PKK eruption in June is the delayed result.What motivates Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK leader operating from exile in Syria-controlled Lebanon, is unclear.

SOME EXPRESSIONS of Islamic faith that would barely raise an eyebrow in the United States -- wearing a veil in a public building, for instance -- are illegal in Turkey. Adamantly secular since 1923, Turkey has fiercely clung to the image of itself as the modern exception in the Muslim world. Yet modernism has a way of growing old. Long after its big neighbor to the north abandoned the cult of Lenin, Turkey still adorns every office and every piece of money and every school building with the image of Mustafa Kemal, or Ataturk, the founding father who wore wing collars, outlawed the fez, drank raki with gusto -- and scorned what he saw as the irrationality of organized religion.

Leading up to the big Diner reunion on Dec. 10, The Charles is showing a retrospective of Barry Levinson's "Baltimore films. " The screenings begin on Wednesday, Thanksgiving Eve, with "Avalon "(1990).  Ask 10 people what their favorite moment from the movie is, and all 10 will say it's Lou Jacobi's Thanksgiving Day tantrum. Late again for dinner, Jacobi's Uncle Gabe is stunned to discoverer that his family, this time, didn't wait for him. Roger Ebert called "You cut the turkey without me?

The sheep's in the meadow, the cow's in the … wait, those aren't sheep, they're alpacas. And those rangy bovines look an awful lot like bison. And what about those long-legged turkeys running loose in the barnyard? St. Mary's County, site of Maryland's first capital, has long been economically dependent on agriculture, and until a few decades ago, tobacco was king. One look at the farms scattered about the countryside, though, makes it clear that change has taken place. Living green, eating fresh and appreciating local heritage have resulted in a rise in agritourism in this Southern Maryland county, where visitors can experience on a personal level the trials and triumphs of unconventional approaches to farming.

The deadline for submitting sports copy is 9 a.m. on Mondays. We prefer email (howardcountysports@patuxent.com). We do not accept results by phone. When two Howard County teams play, players from both teams (first and last names) must be mentioned in the write-up. Questions? Call 410-332-6606. Running The 332 participants in the Turkey Trot 10k Prediction Run had to run 6.2 miles through Jeffers Hill, with the winner finishing closest to 11 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning without the benefit of any timing devices.

I told myself I wasn't going to go here -- I wasn't going to weigh in on the pasting Matt Lauer was taking on Twitter Thursday and Friday for his less-than-stellar performance as TV host for NBC's coverage of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. But where there is vitriol like this, there is definitely something deeper happening -- something worth thinking about. Actually, I think there are several things going on. I wouldn't call it a perfect storm, but there are some ill cultural winds blowing Lauer's way -- and it could mean some rough weather ahead for him and the "Today" show in the battle with ABC's "Good Morning America.

Now that you are stuffed with Turkey Day dinner, you're probably looking for ways to get rid of some of those leftovers. If you're looking for a healthy recipe, Eatingwell.com has some suggestions. The Turkey Squash Soup sounded the tastiest to me. You can find other leftover recipes on their website. Turkey Squash Soup Ingredients 2 teaspoons canola oil 2 leeks, trimmed, chopped and rinsed 1 red bell pepper, chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced 4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth 1 1/2 pounds butternut squash, (1 small to medium)

Every morning, Monday through Friday, blogger Matt Vensel will hook you up with reading material -- mostly on the Ravens but with some other Baltimore sports stuff, too -- to skim through as you slug down gravy and slack off at the start of your workday. That way he'll have an excuse to do the same to start his workday, too. RUNNING IT BACK Running back Ray Rice said he wasn't being disrespectful with that "Terrible Towel" after the Ravens beat the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend.

Sprinting down the sideline in single coverage with just over a minute left in Thursday's 93rd Turkey Bowl, Calvert Hall senior Logan Kurek knew this was the chance he had dreamed about. Moments later, the receiver turned that dream into one of the most dramatic moments in the history of the storied rivalry, hauling in Colar Kuhns' deep ball and outrunning his defender for an 83-yard touchdown that gave the No. 4 Cardinals a 21-14 win over Loyola before an announced 9,298 at M&T Bank Stadium.

Don't be a turkey. If a big bird is too much trouble or too much food for your needs, that's no reason to forgo a favorite Thanksgiving treat, not with all the turkey products on the market. For the "new" turkey is the ultimate convenience food -- nutritious, tasty, versatile, economical and quick-cooking.Today there are more than 30 types of turkey products available. Boneless and bone-in turkey breasts, cutlets, steaks, tenderloins, wings and wing drumettes are popular white-meat items.

It's not too soon to call the turkey hotline. Butterball's Turkey Talk-Line is open now through late December. Call them at 1-800-323-4848.Their hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Thanksgiving they will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.The toll-free hotline available to callers nationwide who have questions about any and all turkey preparations -- from how to buy the bird to how to fix leftovers. Forty-four home economists and nutritionists are available to answer questions. This is the hotline's tenth year.

Can't crimp? The pros at the Crisco Pie Hotline are back to serve up expert pie-baking advice, recipes and tips year round and for extended hours during the Thanksgiving season. I like this one. The InSinkErator site has a good page on how to repair a broken garbarge disposal . You can also find tips ontthe InSinkErator Facebook page on how not to clog your garbage disposal up in the first place. Through Nov. 21, live pie experts can be reached from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. by calling 1-877-FOR-PIE-TIPS (1-877-367-7483)

Over the past few weeks, the dinner conversation sometimes got a little overheated at Jack and Will D'Angelo's Reisterstown home. With Jack playing for Calvert Hall's football team and younger brother Will playing for Loyola's, there wasn't much to agree upon when talk turned to the Turkey Bowl coming up at M&T Bank Stadium on Thursday morning. For the 93rd time, Calvert Hall and Loyola will meet on Thanksgiving Day, but this will be the first time that Jack, a senior starting lineman, and Will, a sophomore reserve receiver, square off. Athletes since they were little, both brothers have strong competitive streaks and, of course, that comes out in everything from pick-up basketball games in the driveway to video games in the basement to conversations about the Turkey Bowl at the dinner table.