???

Sarkozy's France is pretty much against any kind of Union on a socio-political level, yet he is constantly h8ing on da Turkz.

I think that it is vital that the EU engages with Turkey. Influence from the West will help support them and make it less likely that they will succumb to the more hardcore Islamic elements within the country.

The German opposition to their membership is, sadly, more racist than economic.

who knew?

turkey will get its human rights record in order and the possibility of EU membership can only help that. i'm not sure what you mean by opposing views of freedom though? the fact it's a muslim nation is something to consider, i agree. however i'm not sure how much more significant its religion is than that of orthodox christian countries which are hardly cohesive to europe and european values either. outside of istanbul, ankara and the coast, it's a conservative country - but a conservative country with a very secular state - even under and islamic government - and one that is at the forefront of trying to spark an islamic reformation. i think it should be lauded for that, and ever closer ties to europe - free trade and other benefits - with the prospect of full membership can only benefit turkey and europe as a whole. however, after the massive expansion of the community in recent years, i think we need quite a few years before europe is able to absorb such a large economy / nation.

Isn't a fair point at all. It might be an important consideration, but i fail to see how it's a reason against them joining. Isn't theirs still a strongly secular government? (i think that they're pretty strict on the banning of headscarves)

I have pretty much no support for the UK as a religious nation and, when it comes to religion and politics, really don't think that one should guide the other.