In Istanbul: Turkey fast facts

Just landed here in Istanbul, where it's balmy and nice. At 12,000,000 residents (about the size of New York combined with Los Angeles), it's the fourth largest city in the world. Istanbul was founded in 660 BC as Byzantium. In 330 AD, it was renamed Constantinople by Constantine the Great, who made it the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. In 1204, the city was sacked by Crusaders, and two and a half centuries later it was taken by the Turks. Istanbul was chosen as the official name in 1930. The city is located in the northwest part of the country on both sides of the Bosphorus where the strait enters the Sea of Marmara -- a facsinating clash of "East meets West."

Government: Turkey has a republican parliamentary democracy made up of 81 provinces. Its constitution dates to 1982, and its legislature ("Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi") has 550 seats, all elected by popular vote to five year terms. Circuit judges are appointed by the president, and appellate judges are elected by the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors.

Religion: Most (as in 99.9%) of Turkey is Sunni Muslim, there are very small minorities of Shiites and Jews.

Industry: Turkey's most important industry and largest exporter is textiles and clothing, which is almost entirely in private hands. Zorlu Holding Textiles Group is one of Turkey's largest producers and exporters of home textiles. There are no Turkish owned subsidiary businesses with investments in Arkansas.

Here's today's front page from Die Zeit ("The Time") that I picked up in Frankfurt, Germany this morning:

A president for the world?