Turkish Airlines says that several low-level managers put together a document saying that red and pink lipstick and nail polish would be banned for all female flight attendants without consulting the management. Chief Executive Temel Kotil responded to the document after receiving several complaints that the airline was moving too close to Islamic values for comfort.

“As you know, some in Turkey are a little bit keen about these issues,” said Kotil. “We are a great global carrier and we know what we are doing. As to the lipstick, we had no problems but somehow low-level managers put together a paper without asking us and that paper leaked to the media and became a big issue.”

Kotil now says that flight attendants are free to wear the lipstick and nail shade of their choice.

“Staff can use the colour they want. This measure was not approved by the hierarchy,” Kotilo said.

While they may not be getting that conservative, the airline has imposed a recent ban on alcohol served during flights.

While we don’t get a Knowledge Graph result from google.com.tr,where the doodle resides (the Knowledge Graph is not available at google.com.tr yet), Google does provide a Knowledge panel for Barış Manço in the U.S.

In fact, results for him make full use of the Knowledge Carousel, complete with song-specific results:

Manço died in February, 1999.

“The iTunes Store features local artists including Elka in Russia, Sezen Aksu in Turkey, AR Rahman in India, and Zahara in South Africa, international artists including The Beatles, Taylor Swift and Coldplay, and world-renowned classical musicians including Lang Lang, Yo Yo Ma and Yuja Wang,” Apple says. “Customers can choose from over 20 million songs available to purchase and download on the iTunes Store.”

“Movie fans can choose from a wide selection of films available for rent or purchase from the iTunes Store, with many available in stunning HD, from major studios including 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, The Walt Disney Studios and Warner Bros. Pictures, as well as leading local distributors,” the company notes.

Users, of course, have access to the App Store, which features 700,000 apps, which are actually available in as many as 155 countries.

Apple launched iTunes 11 last week. The company also recently announced the addition of AC/DC’s music to its catalog, which was apparently a really big deal.

The White House asked Facebook users to vote between two 40+-pound birds named Cobbler and Gobbler. They cast their votes by liking and sharing separate posts feature each turkey.

Facebook has spoken, and they chose Cobbler as this years official Thanksgiving turkey. Cobbler received a little under 200 more “likes” and about 40 more shares over the last couple of days.

The White House4 hours ago

Today at 2 p.m. ET, President Obama pardons Cobbler, your 2012 National Thanksgiving Turkey, live from the Rose Garden. Meet Cobbler: http://on.fb.me/Wiaw11 Watch the ceremony live on Facebook with the White House Live app and at http://wh.gov/live

Powered by socialditto  1,000+ likes ·  474 comments

As you would expect, PETA wasn’t pleased and asked President Obama to forgo the tradition of pardoning a turkey.

“The White House turkey “pardon” is a sorely outdated event. It makes light of the mass slaughter of some 46 million gentle, intelligent birds and portrays the United States’ president as being in some sort of business partnership with the turkey-killing industry. Turkeys do not need to be “pardoned”—they are not guilty of anything other than being born into a world of prejudice. They are innocents who should be respected for who they are: good mothers, smart birds, and interesting animals,” wrote PETA President Ingrid Newkirk in a letter to Obama.

Despite this protest, the pardoning went on as scheduled. You can watch it below:

If you’re worried about what happened to Gobbler, the White House wants to assuage your fears:

“It’s all gravy — no turkeys will be harmed during the selection of the National Thanksgiving Turkey. After the pardoning, both turkeys travel to George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens to reside in a custom-made enclosure at Mount Vernon’s nationally recognized livestock facility.”

Sure, it’s living out its days on a farm somewhere. Like we haven’t heard that before…

This year, Americans get to vote on which turkey will get the presidential pardon and be declared the 2012 National Thanksgiving Turkey. And they get to choose via Facebook.

The White House’s Facebook page has posted two pictures of two different turkeys, one named Cobbler and the other named Gobbler. Whichever turkey receives the most “likes” and “shares” will be declared the winner.

The White House3 hours ago

Want Cobbler to be the 2012 National Thanksgiving Turkey? “Like” and “share” this post to vote for Cobbler: http://wh.gov/turkey

Powered by socialditto  1,000+ likes ·  364 comments

The White House3 hours ago

Want Gobbler to be the 2012 National Thanksgiving Turkey? “Like” and “share” this post to vote for Gobbler: http://wh.gov/turkey

Powered by socialditto  1,000+ likes ·  115 comments

“Born on the same day on a farm in Rockingham Country, Virginia, Cobbler and Gobbler may look alike, but they’re no birds of a feather. Cobbler craves cranberries, is known for his strut, and enjoys the musical stylings of Carly Simon. Gobbler, a patient but proud bird, loves to nibble on corn and enjoys any music with a fiddle.”

What happens to Cobbler if Gobbler is chosen or Gobbler if Cobbler is chosen?

“It’s all gravy — no turkeys will be harmed during the selection of the National Thanksgiving Turkey. After the pardoning, both turkeys travel to George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens to reside in a custom-made enclosure at Mount Vernon’s nationally recognized livestock facility. Additionally, if for any reason one turkey is unable to perform the duties of the National Thanksgiving Turkey, his alternate will take his place during the National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation,” says the White House blog.

We can only assume that despite what the White House says, the Turkey that doesn’t win the Facebook vote will be stuffed and served to Joe Biden.

Or receive this fate:

The reinforcements were a direct result of Syria’s attack on a Turkish fighter jet last Friday, prompting NATO to announce that they fully intend to defend Turkey if need be. However, the organization did state that the actions the country is currently taking to secure its border “are measures they are taking themselves”.

Problems between the nations have increased as of late following the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a once-peaceful demonstration that has recently turned very bloody. An explosion at the Justice Palace in Damascus on Thursday only further illustrates the level of devastation currently taking place within the country.

Following the attack on the fighter jet, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that they had updated their rules of engagement to deal with such issues. Should any Syrian military forces approach the border that separates the territories, Turkey will treat them as a direct threat.

Despite the potential danger lurking just beyond the horizon, Turkey has not asked NATO for any alliance action. According to an anonymous official, “What they wanted was to make sure that NATO is with them if it comes to defense of their territory. We have plans for the defense of Turkey. They exist; they have long existed.”

In an effort to express just how serious they were about the recent attack, Turkish officials issued a warning to Syria, stating that the country “will act with determination to use all its rights within the international law against this hostile act.” To illustrate their point, state news outlets showed footage of military vehicles and anti-aircraft weaponry amassing near the border.

Users can change the shape and colors of the feathers, the type of head covering, and the shoes of the turkey by clicking on the specific parts. The four feathers are available in many colors and designs, and you can make it wear a toboggan, a wizard hat, and eye patch, and football helmet and more. On the footwear side of things, you options include sneakers, high heels, roller skates and many more.

If you click on the turkey’s wing, is will randomize everything.

UPDATE: Through playing with the Doodle a little more and with a little help from commenters, we’ve found that there are plenty of little Easter eggs hidden in the Doodle. If you align the feathers, hats, and footwear in the right ways, you unlock some sweet hidden animations. The more we learn about this Doodle, the more it’s looking like a productivity killer.

Once you’ve finished your unique creation, you can grab a shortened link to share with friends which will link to your specific turkey design – similar to how you could share your unique songs with the Les Paul playable guitar Google Doodle.

And for the first time that I can recall, there is an actual Google+ share button built into the Doodle. Here’s the box that pops up if you want to share your turkey with your Google+ acquaintances:

See what crazy turkey design combinations you can create, and Happy Thanksgiving!

eBay now owns 93 percent of outstanding GittiGidiyor shares, and although terms of the transaction were not disclosed, eBay fans and shareholders should rest assured that this move isn’t as random as it may sound.

For starters, eBay actually bought a minority stake in GittiGidiyor about four years ago, so it’s had plenty of time to learn how the organization operates and be sure of its profitability.

A couple other interesting facts: GittiGidiyor has over 6.4 million registered users, and according to Internet World Stats eBay highlighted, Turkey is the world’s 12th largest market for Internet usage (with a penetration rate of 45 percent).

Anyway, Doug McCallum, eBay’s senior vice president in Europe, said in a statement, “We knew that when we acquired a stake in GittiGidiyor that we were buying into an excellent business in an exciting ecommerce market.  Since 2007, we have been impressed with GittiGidiyor, its people, its VC investor iLab and its successful approach to ecommerce.  There is a lot that we can learn from GittiGidiyor, and much we can share.”

As for how everyone else is reacting, eBay’s stock is down 1.52 percent so far this morning, but given that the entire market is experiencing a steep decline, this one development may not be entirely (or at all) to blame.

"At present, 3,700 Internet sites are blocked in Turkey, including YouTube, GeoCities, and Google sites," said Miklos Haraszti, an OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media.

"Even as some of the content that is deemed ‘bad’, such as child pornography, must be sanctioned, the law is unfit to achieve this. Instead, by blocking access to entire websites from Turkey, it paralyzes access to numerous modern file sharing or social networks."

In a report Haraszti presented at Bilgi University in Istanbul, Ankara State University and at the International Law Congress of the Ankara Bar Association, he noted that, while in Turkey, he was unable to access even the OSCE’s YouTube website.

"Blocking access inside of Turkey is an affront to the public’s right to the entirety of the Internet, said Haraszti. "Numerous Criminal Code provisions are applied against media workers, and as a result, journalists risk imprisonment for carrying out their work."

"Therefore ‘reform or abolish’ the Internet Law is our main recommendation. I hope that the Turkish authorities will soon remove the blocking provisions that prevent Turkish citizens from being part of today’s global information society."

Related Articles:

> Turkey Asks Google For $47 Million In Taxes

> Legalized Online Gambling Would Bring In Billions

> NY Lawmakers Approve Internet Tax

Robin Wauters wrote earlier today, "Local media reports (links in Turkish) teach us that the Turkish government claims it is entitled to additional taxes because of the fact Google operates its online advertising in the country and even boasts offices and a registered subsidiary there while bills and payments originate from Ireland."

Wauters later continued, "Google, which is [the] market leader in search and online advertising in Turkey, has unsurprisingly countered these claims saying that it runs its ad network operations from Ireland . . . .  Google said it is acting in accordance with the tax laws of every country in which it operates, including Turkish laws, and that its negotiations with the government on this issue are ongoing."

Still, whether Google is or isn’t obeying the letter of the law, the odds aren’t exactly in its favor.  After all, YouTube’s been blocked in Turkey for almost a year and a half just because a few user-generated videos claimed that the country’s founder was gay, so the Turkish authorities have demonstrated a real ability to misplace blame and hold a grudge.

Google’s market cap, by the way, is $170 billion, so $47 million at least wouldn’t represent any sort of deathblow.

Related Articles:

> YouTube Faces Formal Complaints In Germany

> Google Puts Analysts’ Targets, Recession In Rearview Mirror

> Google Caught In Another Patent Dispute