Either way. Even if the Reichstags fire was indeed the work of a single man - and not orchestrated - the Nazi party used it for what it was worth. Similarly with this coup; if it wasn't staged, it still seems clear that Edrogan is using it for what it's worth in order to usher in/cement his dictator powers?

It's pretty clear that Erdogan has been moved closer to being - metaphorically - a "mob boss" than what we consider an "elected official" in the US ( assume a sort of spectrum between those). Your thinking changes when you deal with the possibility of assassination. Guys like Putin can't simply resign; they'll probably be hunted down and killed if they leave power. They're riding the tiger.

The general pattern in the Arab Spring has been to assassinate people like Q'daffi - who remind me more of the heads of crime families than political leaders. But here I sit in the US, where we can afford to have ... separation of concern for those roles. And to an extent, the meritocratic myth even in the US is just that - a myth. It's not like we don't have a presidential pretender running on the idea that it doesn't really work.

I can't imagine a modern politician actively embracing Sharia for any reason other than simply wanting to stay in power.

Indeed. I completely agree.