Excerpt:
In the first event of its kind in Germany, 20,000 people gathered in Cologne Sunday to hear Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan speak. Erdogan's words may have warmed his listeners' hearts, but he neglected to mention how Turks in Germany can improve their quality of life.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan allowed the audience to applaud for a long time before he began addressing his "dear brothers and sisters" assembled in the colossal stadium. He smiled a lot, he waved confidently and shook hands. Approximately 20,000 Turks had gathered to listen to their idol speak in Cologne Arena -- while a few hundred Kurds held protests against the Turkish leader outside.
It's been a long time -- at least since the Berlin Wall came down -- since 20,000 people heard a politician speak live in Germany. The late US President John F. Kennedy drew about half a million Berliners when he delivered his famous speech on the balcony of Schöneberg city hall right after the Wall went up in 1961. Former Chancellor Helmut Kohl could still draw a good 10,000 listeners when he spoke in the winter of 1989-1990. During the most recent parliamentary election campaigns, Gerhard Schröder and Angela Merkel were happy if a few thousand people came to listen to their speeches. And now all of a sudden Erdogan, a Turkish leader, is giving a speech right in the middle of Germany to a capacity audience of 20,000 people -- not counting the many people who were waiting in vain outside to get in.