We are all afraid of getting the flu because we do not want to die like Mexicans, Americans and Asians. Why is Turkey panicking even though many people die from regular influenza due to weak immune systems? Why do we need that kind of crisis, concerning unconscious driving motives of fear, in Turkey? 

This land has its own style of precautions against the swine flu. We arrange holidays for school children; we do not kiss each other, our traditional symbol of greeting. We ask porters to disinfect public places with bleach; we use wet wipes before eating in restaurants; we plunder herbalists, etc. We are all afraid of getting the flu because we do not want to die like Mexicans, Americans and Asians. Why is Turkey panicking even though many people die from regular influenza due to weak immune systems? Why do we need that kind of crisis, concerning unconscious driving motives of fear, in Turkey?

I am definitely aware that H1N1 can spread from person to person; some people can die from it. However, it can be treated, and its symptoms are similar to those of the regular flu and no worse than the regular flu. Experts say washing hands with soap and water to strengthen the immune system and to avoid being exposed to those who have swine flu are enough measures to protect against the flu. Nevertheless, if it were possible, would we almost quit breathing? We are looting vaccines whose adverse effects are not yet known. We are voluntary test subjects. We do not care about other problems; we just do not want to die!

 According to Foucault, the set of mechanisms through which the basic biological features of the human species became the object of a political strategy, of a general strategy of power, is called biopower 

Actually, hearsay is a mechanism that works well in Turkey. To illustrate, a rumor of a large purchase of body bags by municipalities as a precautionary measure in the event of an earthquake can become the reason for people not to sleep in their houses; rather they sleep outside with many unknown threats. Panic waves sell; fear mobilizes people without questioning. This surveillance is built by either medical officers and medical inspectors or the state itself.

Controlling our own bodies and coercing our own health would be a means of social control and a kind of micro-fascism of states. Swine flu is either considered a thing more dangerous than terrorist attacks or a security problem. We are involved in permitted and punished social rituals; moreover, we remain disciplined in the face of the enemies of our health, such as swine flu. What is more interesting, we exclude people who are not protected from swine flu whether they have influenza or not. We accuse them of being irresponsible citizens; we build conspiracy theories. We develop conspiracy theories about our children’s classmates who have abnormal fevers in elementary schools. We arrange e-mail chains, and we “tweet.”

Briefly and roughly, if we could draw an evolutionary line of control mechanisms over people, we can say that in the pre-modern era people believed in supernatural powers or had strong religious beliefs. In other words, they were controlled through sacred mechanisms. Their conscience worked like a policeman in their hearts. There was no external control over them, no need to even have it.

In modern times, people confronted a new concept that is secular law. People obeyed the rules; however, their control was external to them. They did not internalize the laws, and they were not controlled efficiently by others since they did not obey the rules when they were their own. When we look at post-modern lives, we can easily see the medical domination that comes through health measures. We have to be healthy; we have to have fit bodies. Our externality transcends our immanence. Plato’s dualism of mind and body sharpens in the way that our immaterial being would be unnecessary. We actualize them as bodies, as we do not live in a world of spirits. Our ontological being is directed to our bodies, which are properly managed by the others.

According to Foucault, the set of mechanisms through which the basic biological features of the human species became the object of a political strategy, of a general strategy of power, is called biopower. The swine flu case in Turkey is just an example of biopower. Do we have unlimited rights to our bodies? Or do we, as organic human beings, desire to control our health to an infinite extent? Do we want our minds to have absolute power over our matter? Is avoiding swine flu a self-generation or self-realization?

We live in concentric prison zones in Turkey; everybody looks to each other, everybody loves to control the other and everybody believes his/her neighbor who has a quick medical fix. We like watching medical TV shows; we find correlations between diseases; we definitely have relatives who have serious illnesses; we chat about our disease symptoms; we already diagnose problems as doctors. We believe in herbalists; we believe in healers; we do not care about the conflicts in our beliefs. We believe only. Now, we believe the news about swine flu; we believe the anchormen; we believe our governors. Nonetheless, we do not believe medical doctors who claim swine flu is a normal disease that we need to be careful about but do not need to panic over. We are controlled, watched in our houses; biopower works in our modern Turkey. We feel pleasure in hearing the disaster jargon regarding swine flu, and with these global warnings, we could have a “real” individual business. A healthy mind is found in a healthy body. Let’s try to be healthier; let’s play exaggerated scenarios of this biopower drama. Let’s panic more than now; let’s think about other serious mortal dangers that could spread over the world programmed to kill the Turkish nation. Who knows, maybe some others will throw a biological weapon at Turkey within the mask of swine flu, “pig” flu. Therefore, pig is already the food of infidels, and thus none of our business.



* Published in Turkey's TODAY'S ZAMAN on Nov. 3.