Turkey joining the EU? Disucuss

But Turkey has been a part of NATO for a long time, fought in WW1, a member of the European council and so on. It would be silly to say Turkey has absolutely nothing to do with Europe. If we were talking about a country like Sudan trying to join then fair enough. But Turkey does have ties to Europe, we cannot ignore that. And tbf they are one of the most "westernised" Muslim countries.

They have an interesting economy, that could be a positive for the EU in the long term. http://www.oecd.org/economy/turkey-economic-forecast-summary.htm

But ultimately, we mustn't rush in a decision, we don't want to burden the EU further and need to make a sound decision that benefits everyone.

Once again, I don't refute Turkey's support of Europe and alliance with the Western world, but the fact still remains that apart from the Eastern Thrace, Turkey is not a European nation.
Admittedly, the EU should have thought more carefully about letting in many of the less developed Eastern European countries (Romania, etc.), but at least they can still claim a cultural and geographic European heritage.

I guess my stance on this is really only culturally and historically motivated. If the EU decided to rename itself the "World Union" or "Global Union" (sounds stupid, but just as an example) I wouldn't balk against Turkish membership. As long as Turkey fulfills the human rights, etc. requirements I really couldn't care less.
After all, it is a beautiful country, has great food and lovely people.