Not a day passes without at least one commentary about the nefarious plots foreign powers are hatching against Turkey. For instance, if you google “Türkiye’ye büyük tuzak” (Big plot against Turkey), you get 8,700 results. If you search for “Hedef Türkiye!” (Turkey is the target!), you can find—wait for it—a whopping 239,000 results. Naturally, there are many other similar examples.
In such commentaries, Turkey is often portrayed as a strong and rising power, which has been facing unprecedented international plots by jealous outsiders.
In fact, the idea of Turkey being surrounded by internal and external enemies is not a new phenomenon. It has long been embedded in Turkey’s political culture and is often referred to as the Sevres Syndrome—from the treaty that confirmed the defeat and partition of the Ottoman Empire by foreign powers after World War I.
But maintaining the sense of trauma doubtlessly serves a political purpose, since it is instrumental in terms of mobilizing the masses against threats, whether real or imagined. Therefore, it helps policymakers manufacture consent about specific policies. And at times, governments reap the benefits of being a victim of conspiracies without having to assume responsibility for their actions...http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/conspiracy-theories-are-the-opium-of-the-masses.aspx?pageID=238&nID=115763&NewsCatID=570
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