The Road Ahead or The Road Behind by George Joseph Moriarty Sometimes I think the Fates must Grin as we denounce and insist The only reason we can’t win Is the Fates themselves that miss Yet there lives on an ancient claim We win or lose within ourselves The shining trophies on our shelves Can never win tomorrow’s game You and I know deeper down There’s always a chance to win the crown But when we fail to give our best We simply haven’t met the test Of giving all, and saving none Until the game is really won Of showing what is meant by grit Of fighting on when others quit Of playing through, not letting up It’s bearing down that wins the cup Of taking it and taking more Until we gain the winning score Of dreaming there’s a goal ahead Of hoping when our dreams are dead Of praying when our hopes have fled Yet losing, not afraid to fall If bravely, we have given all For who can ask more of a man Than giving all within his span Giving all, it seems to me Is not so far from victory And so the Fates are seldom wrong No matter how they twist and wind It is you and I who make our fates We open up or close the gates On the road ahead or the road behind.

@galbeedi said: Ooweyne, Awdal does not need rescue. some of them are somehow content to live with hapless "Hapro" in these difficult and dangerous times. Yet as we speak those who are not satisfied with the status quo will grow one day. Everyone has high hopes for Farmaajo to improve the situation in Somalia, but it seems a prosperous and peaceful Somalia is a threat to many. When I visited Somaliland in 2011, an aging wise man told me , " Adder 1990, Soomaalidu way wada waalatay meel kasta oo ay joogto oo is gawracday, Anagu hadaanu nahay reer Awdal kuwii noogu xigay oo dadka waashay ugu horeeyey ayaanu soo qabanay oo marada ku xidhnay anagoo is leh , hadhow kuwii kale oo miyir qaba ayaad mar kale isu imaanaysaan, weli waan sugaynaa". He thought after the pacification of Somaliland the other Somalis would come and we would all leave in peace together as brothers and sisters. You keep mentioning Wabar, and I can assure you that was just an experiment. A dry run if you will. He was just A suldaan who was not up to the job, like most Suldaans in Somaliland, but never the less, it was an experiment that sent some shock waves to Hapro. It was a message that the people will not sit by and watch when your uncle Siilaanyo keep looting the public purse. Now everyone knows , if the next one is organized better, it could do a big damage. If that is your wish, who knows you might get it. I do not think that you have to wait that long, because in this part of the world , the next leader is always worse than the one who proceeded him. God forbid if you crown another unrepentant warlord like Muuse Biixi, after 25 as a leader , another more dangerous Wabar will rise. Let me go little bit further. Farmaajo is expected to push a national agenda that is unifying Somalia. It is probably the last hope for many Somalis including many unionists like me. If he does not deliver , a lot could change. Unlike you, we the unionists believe that we can not abandon the blue flag and the union, but if these southern leaders keep messing things and play games with the future of the people, a lot will change. We will not be like CaliK khaliif or Ahmed Samatar. Last December, I was trying to travel to Jigjiga and sit down with Cabdi Illey. I do not like the way he does business , but, if Ethiopia disintegrates we the Awdalites could join the Zone 5, and form a new Super Somali sate which could easily be the largest state in the region. Our combined population would prosper . If we can not get the big nation that we are aspiring to, then we have to form another bigger state and forget about Mogadishu and Hargeisa, since they both failed us. A new Western Somalia with livestock, oil, and huge coastal land could emerge and substitute the southern led Somalia. that would leave the "Hapro triangle " to fight each other until the cows come home. Then the might come to their senses and join our Western Somali state with the failed Hapro and Southern Somalia, and finally achieve the dream of our fathers. that might be just an idea of a disgruntled Awdalite fuming, but it is a thought . We will not be watching the southern gamesmanship and the lunatic SNM who sequestered themselves in 1987, some thirty years ago, waste the future of our young with endless shenanigans. Tillamook--the all conquering hero of SOL-- approves this statement! ?

^ I see Oodweyne is holding, yet another anti- Farmaajo "press conferences".? The poor sod looks as if he's about to be afflicted with an epileptic fit at any moment.?

@cadnaan1 said: malistar2012 when is gonna be the handover ceremony between you and CHE wakiilka dowlada ee somaliaonline. already che is doing the job flooding the place pics and videos. Lol? I doubt Che could ever muster the required audacity, nor the sort of damn-your-eyes hauteur necessary to defend the indefensible. This, we are all aware, was precisely what our dear friend-- Mudane Malistar-- was able to pull off in here, flawlessly and without a hitch, these last four years as Damjadiid mouthpiece. My only hope now is that Malistar will stick around on SOL and maybe help us hold the newly elected Farmaajo to account.

Lol @ "Puntland,Galmudug, Farmaajo"! ?? These celebrations throughout Somalia welcoming the new President remind me of sheekadii Dhagdheer, whereby all the people in the story in the end sing, "Dhegdheer dhimatay, roobey Dhulkii Nabade!". Which only confirms the intolerable hideousness of the recent Culusow presidency which the Somali nation collectively just survived. In any case, lets all enjoy this honeymoon period for Farmaajo, for there is a lot of work to do.

^ Saalax, I am personally glad that reason has finally regained its throne. I am happy to note that like me; you agree that whatever differences the clans of Somalia have or have had with one another-- the only way forward is to pursue peace, reconciliation and development under the umbrella of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Kudos to you mate for coming in from the cold, unlike Oodweywne, our resident hapless secessionist-- who insists upon freezing his balls outside, rather than accept the warm embrace of Mother Somalia.?

"It ain't easy being cheesy!" ??? VIVA FARMAAJO!" Congratulations to the new President of the Federal Republic of Somalia. May his leadership set Somalia on the path to peace, prosperity and national unity. Long live Mudane Farmaajo! p.s Oodweywne, sxb, allow me to offer you my most sincere commiserations on this most ominous dark day for our erstwhile hapless Habro contingent of SOL...?

^ Gooni, sxb, while I enjoyed your little anecdote, I don't think we should give much credence nor hullabaloo to the moryanism on display in Mudug. The actions of our Moryan neighbors is nothing more than the last ditch attempts to derail the 2016 elections. But, like every thing else that Culusow has done in his tenure, he will once more come up short. The federalism agenda Puntland has pushed for is now the law of the land, and today in every corner of Somalia, the institutions of the Somali Federal government are being strengthened, which as we all know is an anathema to the Moryan ideology that has been running amok, these past two decades or so, in Somalia.

^ Marka adigu ma waxaad na leedahay Rooxaan baa Puntland weerar ku ah? Caqli bur saliid waaxid? Like I said in a different post...a mooryaan is a mooryaan: ama afka soo duubo ama dhar ciidan soo xiro.?

^...thanks for the compliment, saaxiib. ********************************* AL AARAAF. by Edgar Allan Poe Part I. O! NOTHING earthly save the ray [Thrown back from flowers] of Beauty’s eye, As in those gardens where the day Springs from the gems of Circassy — O! nothing earthly save the thrill Of melody in woodland rill — Or [music of the passion-hearted] Joy’s voice so peacefully departed That like the murmur in the shell, Its echo dwelleth and will dwell — With nothing of the dross of ours — Yet all the beauty — all the flowers That list our Love, and deck our bowers Adorn yon world afar, afar — The wandering star — [page 14:] ’Twas a sweet time for Nesace — for there Her world lay lolling on the golden air, Near four bright suns — a temporary rest — A garden-spot in desert of the blest.   Away — away — mid seas of rays that roll Empyrean splendor o’er th’ unchained soul — The soul that scarce [the billows are so dense] Can struggle to its destin’d eminence — To distant spheres, from time to time, she rode, And late to ours, the favour’d one of God — But, now, the ruler of an anchor’d realm, She throws aside the sceptre — leaves the helm, And, amid incense, and high spiritual hymns, Laves in quadruple light her angel limbs.   Now happiest, loveliest in yon lovely Earth, Whence sprang the “Idea of Beauty” into birth. [Falling in wreaths thro’ many a startled star, Like woman’s hair ’mid pearls, until, afar, It lit on hills Archaian, and there dwelt] She look’d into Infinity — and knelt. Rich clouds, for canopies, about her curled — Fit emblems of the model of her world — Seen but in beauty — not impeding sight Of other beauty glittering thro’ the light — A wreath that twined each starry form around. And all the opal’d air in colour bound.   All hurriedly she knelt upon a bed Of flowers: of lilies such as rear the head On the fair Capo Deucato, and sprang So eagerly around about to hang Upon the flying footsteps of — deep pride — †Of her who lov’d a mortal — and so died — The Sephalica, budding with young bees, Uprear’d its purple stem around her knees — And gemmy flower, of Trebizond misnamed — Inmate of highest stars, where erst it sham’d All other loveliness: its honied dew [The fabled nectar that the heathen knew] Deliriously sweet, was dropp’d from Heaven. And fell on gardens of the unforgiven In Trebizond — and on a sunny flower So like its own above that, to this hour, It still remaineth torturing the bee With madness, and unwonted reverie — In Heaven, and all its environs, the leaf And blossom of the fairy plant, in grief Disconsolate linger — grief that hangs her head, Repenting follies that full long have fled, Heaving her white breast to the balmy air Like guilty beauty, chasten’d, and more fair — Nyctanthes too, as sacred as the light She fears to perfume, perfuming the night — And Clytia pondering between many a sun, While pettish tears adown her petals run — And that aspiring flower that sprang on Earth — And died, ere scarce exalted into birth, Bursting its odorous heart in spirit to wing Its way to Heaven, from garden of a king — And Valisnerian lotus thither flown From struggling with the waters of the Rhone — And thy most lovely purple perfume, Zante! I sola d’oro! — Fior di Levante! — And the Nelumbo bud that floats for ever With Indian Cupid down the holy river — Fair flowers, and fairy! to whose care is given To bear the Goddess’ song, in odours, up to Heaven —   “Spirit! that dwellest where, In the deep sky, The terrible and fair, In beauty vie! Beyond the line of blue — The boundary of the star Which turneth at the view Of thy barrier and thy bar — Of the barrier overgone By the comets who were cast From their pride, and from their throne To be drudges till the last — To be carriers of fire [The red fire of their heart] With speed that may not tire And with pain that shall not part — Who livest — that we know — In Eternity — we feel — But the shadow of whose brow What spirit shall reveal? Tho’ the beings whom thy Nesace, Thy messenger hath known Have dream’d for thy Infinity A model of their own — Thy will is done, O! God! The star hath ridden high Thro’ many a tempest, but she rode Beneath thy burning eye And here, in thought, to thee — In thought that can alone Ascend thy empire and so be A partner of thy throne By winged Fantasy, My embassy is given Till secrecy shall knowledge be In the environs of Heaven.”   She ceas’d — and buried then her burning cheek Abash’d, amid the lilies there, to seek A shelter from the fervor of his eye For the stars trembled at the Deity. She stirr’d not — breath’d not — for a voice was there How solemnly pervading the calm air A sound of silence on the startled ear Which dreamy poets name “the music of the sphere.” Ours is a world of words: Quiet we call “Silence” — which is the merest word of all — Here Nature speaks, and ev’n ideal things Flap shadowy sounds from visionary wings — But ah! not so when, thus, in realms on high The eternal voice of God is passing by, And the red winds are withering in the sky! “What tho’ in worlds which sightless Cycles run Link’d to a little system, and one sun Where all my love is folly and the crowd Still think my terrors but the thunder cloud The storm, the earthquake, and the ocean-wrath — [Ah! will they cross me in my angrier path?] What tho’ in worlds which own a single sun The sands of Time grow dimmer as they run Yet thine is my resplendency, so given To bear my secrets thro’ the upper Heaven: Leave tenantless thy chrystal home, and fly, With all thy train, athwart the moony sky — Apart — like fire-flies in Sicilian night, And wing to other worlds another light; Divulge the secrets of thy embassy To the proud orbs that twinkle — and so be To ev’ry heart a barrier and a ban Lest the stars totter in the guilt of man.”   Up rose the maiden in the yellow night, The single-mooned eve! on Earth we plight Our faith to one love — and one moon adore — The birth-place of young Beauty had no more. As sprang that yellow star from downy hours Up rose the maiden from her shrine of flowers, And bent o’er sheeny mountain and dim plain Her way — but left not yet her Therasæan reign. AL AARAAF. Part II. HIGH on a mountain of enamell’d head — Such as the drowsy shepherd on his bed Of giant pasturage lying at his ease, Raising his heavy eyelid, starts and sees With many a mutter’d “hope to be forgiven” What time the moon is quadrated in Heaven — Of rosy head that, towering far away Into the sunlit ether, caught the ray Of sunken suns at eve — at noon of night, While the moon danc’d with the fair stranger light — Uprear’d upon such height arose a pile Of gorgeous columns on th’ unburthen’d air, Flashing from Parian marble that twin smile Far down upon the wave that sparkled there, And nursled the young mountain in its lair: *Of molten stars their pavement, such as fall Thro’ the ebon air, besilvering the pall Of their own dissolution, while they die — Adorning then the dwellings of the sky: A dome, by linked light from Heaven let down, Sat gently on these columns as a crown — A window of one circular diamond, there, Look’d out above into the purple air, And rays from God shot down that meteor chain And hallow’d all the beauty twice again, Save when, between th’ Empyrean and that ring, Some eager spirit flapp’d his dusky wing: But on the pillars Seraph eyes have seen The dimness of this world: that greyish green That Nature loves the best for Beauty’s grave Lurk’d in each cornice, round each architrave — And ev’ry sculptur’d cherub thereabout That, from his marble dwelling ventur’d out Seem’d earthly in the shallow of his niche — Archaian statues in a world so rich? Friezes from Tadmor and Persepolis — From Balbec, and the stilly, clear abyss Of beautiful Gomorrah! O! the wave Is now upon thee — but too late to save! —   Sound loves to revel near a summer night: Witness the murmur of the grey twilight That stole upon the ear, in Eyraco, Of many a wild star-gazer long ago — That stealeth ever on the ear of him, Who, musing, gazeth on the distance dim, And sees the darkness coming as a cloud — Is not its form — its voice — most palpable and loud?   But what is this? — it cometh — and it brings A music with it — ‘tis the rush of wings — A pause — and then a sweeping, falling strain And Nesace is in her halls again: From the wild energy of wanton haste Her cheek was flushing, and her lips apart; And zone that clung around her gentle waist Had burst beneath the heaving of her heart: Within the centre of that hall to breathe She paus’d and panted, Zanthe! all beneath — The fairy light that kiss’d her golden hair And long’d to rest, yet could but sparkle there!   Young flowers were whispering in melody To happy flowers that night — and tree to tree; Fountains were gushing music as they fell In many a star-lit grove, or moon-lit dell; Yet silence came upon material things — Fair flowers, bright waterfalls and angel wings — And sound alone that from the spirit sprang Bore burthen to the charm the maiden sang.   “ ‘Neath blue-bell or streamer — Or tufted wild spray That keeps, from the dreamer, †The moonbeam away — Bright beings! that ponder, With half closing eyes, On the stars which your wonder Hath drawn from the skies, Till they glance thro’ the shade, and Come down to your brow Like —— eyes of the maiden Who calls on you now — Arise! from your dreaming In violet bowers, To duty beseeming These star-litten hours — And shake from your tresses Encumber’d with dew The breath of those kisses That cumber them too — [O! how, without you, Love! could angels be blest]? Those kisses of true love That lull’d ye to rest: Up! — shake from your wing Each hindering thing: The dew of the night — It would weigh down your flight; And true love caresses — O! leave them apart, They are light on the tresses, But hang on the heart.   Ligeia! Ligeia! My beautiful one! Whose harshest idea Will to melody run, O! is it thy will On the breezes to toss? Or, capriciously still, Like the lone Albatross, Incumbent on night [As she on the air] To keep watch with delight On the harmony there?   Ligeia! whatever Thy image may be No magic shall sever Thy music from thee: Thou hast bound many eyes In a dreamy sleep — But the strains still arise Which thy vigilance keep — The sound of the rain Which leaps down to the flower, And dances again In the rhythm of the shower — The murmur that springs From the growing of grass Are the music of things — But are modell’d, alas! — Away, then my dearest, O! hie thee away To springs that lie clearest Beneath the moon ray — To lone lake that smiles, In its dream of deep rest, At the many star-isles That enjewel its breast — Where wild flowers, creeping, Have mingled their shade, On its margin is sleeping Full many a maid — Some have left the cool glade, and Have slept with the bee — Arouse them my maiden, On moorland and lea — Go! breathe on their slumber, All softly in ear, The musical number They slumber’d to hear — For what can awaken An angel so soon Whose sleep hath been taken Beneath the cold moon As the spell which no slumber Of witchery may test, The rythmical number Which lull’d him to rest?”   Spirits in wing, and angels to the view, A thousand seraphs burst th’ Empyrean thro’, Young dreams still hovering on their drowsy flight — Seraphs in all but “Knowledge,” the keen light That fell, refracted, thro’ thy bounds, afar O! Death! from eye of God upon that star: Sweet was that error — sweeter still that death — Sweet was that error — ev’n with us the breath Of science dims the mirror of our joy — To them ‘twere the Simoom, and would destroy — For what [to them] availeth it to know That Truth is Falsehood — or that Bliss is Woe? Sweet was their death — with them to die was rife With the last extacy of satiate life — Beyond that death no immortality — But sleep that pondereth and is not “to be” — And there — oh! may my weary spirit dwell — Apart from Heaven’s Eternity — and yet how far from Hell! What guilty spirit, in what shrubbery dim, Heard not the stirring summons of that hymn? But two: they fell: for Heaven no grace imparts To those who hear not for their beating hearts. A maiden-angel and her seraph-lover — O! where (and ye may seek the wide skies over) Was Love, the blind, near sober Duty known? Unguided Love hath fallen — ’mid “tears of perfect moan:”   He was a goodly spirit — he who fell: A wanderer by mossy, mantled well — A gazer on the lights that shine above — A dreamer in the moonbeam by his love: What wonder? For each star is eye-like there, And looks so sweetly down on Beauty’s hair — And they, and ev’ry mossy spring were holy To his love haunted heart and melancholy. The night had found (to him a night of wo) Upon a mountain crag, young Angelo — Beetling it bends athwart the solemn sky, And scowls on starry worlds that down beneath it lie. Here sate he with his love — his dark eye bent With eagle gaze along the firmament: Now turn’d it upon her — but ever then It trembled to one constant star again. “Ianthe, dearest, see! how dim that ray! How lovely ’tis to look so far away! She seem’d not thus upon that autumn eve I left her gorgeous halls — nor mourn’d to leave: That eve — that eve — I should remember well — The sun-ray dropp’d, in Lemnos, with a spell On th’ ‘Arabesq’ carving of a gilded hall Wherein I sate, and on the drapried wall — And on my eye lids — O! the heavy light! How drowsily it weigh’d them into night! On flowers, before, and mist, and love they ran With Persian Saadi in his Gulistan: But O! that light! — I slumber’d — Death, the while, Stole o’er my senses in that lovely isle So softly that no single silken hair Awoke that slept — or knew that it was there.   The last spot of Earth’s orb I trod upon Was a proud temple call’d the Parthenon — More beauty clung around her column’d wall Than ev’n thy glowing bosom beats withal, And when old Time my wing did disenthral Thence sprang I — as the eagle from his tower, And years I left behind me in an hour. What time upon her airy bounds I hung One half the garden of her globe was flung Unrolling as a chart unto my view — Tenantless cities of the desert too! Ianthe, beauty crowded on me then, And half I wish’d to be again of men.   “My Angelo! and why of them to be? A brighter dwelling-place is here for thee — And greener fields than in yon world above, And women’s loveliness — and passionate love.   “But, list, Ianthe! when the air so soft Fail’d, as my pennon’d spirit leapt aloft, Perhaps my brain grew dizzy — but the world I left so late was into chaos hurl’d — Sprang from her station, on the winds apart, And roll’d, a flame, the fiery Heaven athwart. Methought, my sweet one, then I ceas’d to soar And fell — not swiftly as I rose before, But with a downward, tremulous motion thro’ Light, brazen rays, this golden star unto! Nor long the measure of my falling hours, For neared of all stars was thine to ours — Dread star! that came, amid a night of mirth, A red Dædalion on the timid Earth! “We came — and to thy Earth — but not to us Be given our lady’s bidding to discuss: We came, my love; around, above, below, Gay fire-fly of the night we come and go, Nor ask a reason save the angel-nod She grants to us, as granted by her God — But, Angelo, than thine grey Time unfurl’d Never his fairy wing o’er fairier world! Dim was its little disk, and angel eyes Alone could see the phantom in the skies, When first Al Aaraaf knew her course to be Headlong thitherward o’er the starry sea — But when its glory swell’d upon the sky, As glowing Beauty’s bust beneath man’s eye, We paus’d before the heritage of men, And thy star trembled — as doth Beauty then!” Thus, in discourse, the lovers whiled away The night that waned and waned and brought no day They fell: for Heaven to them no hope imparts Who hear not for the beating of their hearts.

^ Che, please put a lid on your naïveté for a sec. Culusow and the abortion he put together called "Galmudug" are Al Shabab, and they deliberately have chosen to use terrorism as a tool to achieve their political objectives. But this is Somalia, and the tribes of Somalia know one another very well. Moryaanimo by any other name is still Moryaanimo. They can keep switching shirts all they want... they ain't fooling no one.

Galbeedi, The problem here is the audacity of the typical moryaan-hutu mentality these days. Laakin usheeg saaxiib, maanta wakhti la isku soo duubto afka ma aha!?

@galbeedi said: I do believe that the Kenyans will lose this one. Their president and vice president and their government in an earlier case refused to cooperate with this court. For the first time we also clearly understood that what prime minister Ina C/Rashiid and former minister C/shakuur did was sign a memorandum of understanding to resolve the issue through United Nation's conflict resolution. They should not have done that, but to be fair, that did not mean they gave away the Somali sea. I agree... no one individual can "give" away anything that belongs to the Somali people, so this brouhaha about Omar "giving" away our sea is just election season politicking. However, a negative outcome of this court case for Somalia could potentially become an ambition killing disaster for Cumar.

This could lead to a dispute over the maritime boundary with Kenya’s southern neighbor Tanzania, which could in turn have an impact on Mozambique, Madagascar and South Africa. After the ICC decides in favor of Kenya, the court will claim that because they do not want to set a precedent that will have a domino effect of maritime disputes all over Africa, Somalia must surrender its waters to Kenya. ... and however unfortunate and sad such an outcome may be for us Somalis, I can't say I blame Kenya for taking advantage of weakened Somalia.

For years, Kenya and Somalia have argued over where their maritime boundary in the Indian Ocean runs. The International Court of Justice in The Hague could now decide who owns the sea, a decision that will only suit one. A narrow triangle off the coast of Africa, in the Indian Ocean, about 100,000 square kilometers (62,000 square miles), is the bone of contention between neighboring Kenya and Somalia. Both countries want the area because it supposedly has a large deposit of oil and gas, but it's not clear to which country it belongs. "The position of the boundary is a gray area," said Timothy Walter, a maritime border conflict researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in South Africa. For Kenya, however, the boundary is quite clear. It lies line parallel to the line of latitude. That gives Kenya the larger share of the maritime area and it has already sold mining licenses to international companies. But Somalia disagrees. The Somalis want the boundary to extend to the southeast as an extension of the land border. In 2009, both countries agreed that the United Nations commission in charge of mediating border disputes should determine the border line once and for all. They also agreed that they should continue to work together to find a solution so that the matter would not have to go to court. That does not seem to have worked - at least from the Somali perspective. In 2014, Somalia sued Kenya at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague. The court represents one way of solving border conflicts in maritime areas if bilateral or regional attempts fail. The Somali government wrote in its lawsuit that that was exactly what had happened. "The parties met numerous times to discuss how the dispute can be settled. But no progress was made in any of the meetings," the government said. Somalia has long been considered a failed state without a functioning government. It has only had an elected president again since 2012 and now seems anxious to safeguard what it regards as its sovereign rights in the Indian Ocean. Somalia wants the ICJ to define the boundary as laid down by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international sea laws. In disputed cases, a temporary boundary is drawn along a line that is at the same distance from both coastlines, if there are no physical obstacles to this. A test period is then implemented to see if this boundary is fair to both sides or if it benefits or disadvantages one or the other. Kenyan forces are helping Somalia in the fight against al-Shabab Kenya's government, however, is sticking to its preferred border demarcation. For nearly 100 years, it had considered this line to be its border, the government wrote. Since Kenya and Somalia had agreed to settle the dispute out of court, Kenya appealed to the court in 2015 opposing the litigation. The court now wants to hear both sides, beginning Monday and will then decide whether it will initiate proceedings. Only one winner If court proceedings are opened, then the decision on the border will be binding. Walker thinks that a court case is a high risk for both states. "If the court should decide in favor of Somalia, the Kenyan border would shift dramatically," he said. This could lead to a dispute over the maritime boundary with Kenya's southern neighbor Tanzania, which could in turn have an impact on Mozambique, Madagascar and South Africa. A compromise is possible, of course, at least in theory: "Both countries could share the area and the mining of raw materials," Walker said. He said there is a good example in West Africa, where Nigeria and the archipelago of Sao Tome and Principe teamed up to produce oil. But for Somalia and Kenya, Walker does not see any chance. "Both countries do not want to make any compromise when it comes to their own sovereign rights. That can change, of course, but at the moment, it looks like an either-or decision," he said. Walker estimates that the decision will be made next year. Somalia is increasingly protecting its borders as the government in Mogadishu asserts control over the country Sea-blindness is over Overall, experts like Walker are observing a growing trend for states, especially in Africa, to take an interest in setting their maritime borders. Walker calls it the "end of the sea-blindness." "Most African states lack a substantial navy or a coastguard and many conflicts have spilled over land boundaries or land borders. So historically, there has always been a focus on what is happening on land. Now, that's changing because what we can see more and more is the resources from the sea are more accessible now through better technological processes," Walker said. To the west of the continent, Ghana and Ivory Coast are engaged in a similar conflict about their boundary in the Atlantic Ocean. The two countries are currently awaiting a decision by the International Tribunal for Law of the Sea, an alternative to the International Court of Justice, which resolves border disputes between conflicting countries. East African neighbors Malawi and Tanzania also have a boundary dispute, this time located in a lake. Lake Malawi borders Tanzania and holds huge amounts of oil deposits. But the colonial-era border for Tanzania ends on the bank of the lake. These are not the only countries waiting to see how the conflict between Kenya and Somalia continues. DW

Oodweyne, First of all, let me set the record straight here... I have no hard feelings toward you nor any other baboon in here who expects me to "debate" the usual nonsense and abject buffoonery of the secessionist contingent of SOL. For a very long time now, deranged secessionist louts such as yourself have been talking about closing a fictitious border, but of late it seems; sheekadiiba waxay ku soo aruurtay beerjileecnimo iyo sheeko caata ah about "Maternal cousins", but I will have you know that only a Mirqaan-incapacitated oaf would think that the Royal Daraawiish Family would permit the breakup of Somalia. In any case, don't let me discourage you, Mudane Oodweyne: ? The administration of the hapless Habros should keep up the good work of attempting to mend bridges with their "Maternal cousins"--though I am also sufficiently circumspect about the sincerity of the Silanyo administration in these efforts--Nonetheless, if his efforts are genuine, it would indeed be laudable for the hapless Habros to seek dialogue and rapprochement with the Daraawiish family because this will only hasten the eventual political return from the cold of our erstwhile Habros in the north of our country to the warm and welcoming embrace of Mother Somalia. Marka Oodka, sxb, go on ahead...feel free to keep spouting your secessionist hogwash in here. But just don't expect me to encourage or engage with it under some pretext of calling it "debate". And I hope, in turn, you won't hold any grudge nor hard feelings for my taking of such a redoubtable stance in here. Sincerely yours, Tillamook (The all conquering hero of SOL and slayer of mooncalf secessionists?)

*YAWN* Oodweyne, sir, I literally have no idea wtf you're babbling on about? .....actually don't bother answering, it'll only be more of the same inane drivel and useless secessionist claptrap that we have become accustomed to on this gallery over the years. I am sorry but I no longer have the patience nor inclination, whatsoever, for such dull work.

^ Give that putrid claptrap a rest, or at least a brief intermission, Malistar.?

Oodka, sxb, I wouldn't put too much credence to Culusow's desperation. His goose is cooked. I also mostly agree with everything else you've mentioned; especially the necessity for genuine reconciliation-- started at the grassroots level based on our age old Xeer system --to take place throughout Somalia. However in the case of our beloved Habros in the north, I think it is too little, too late because I know the Silanyo administration is incapable of championing genuine and honest reconciliation. You and I both know, in order for the hapless Habros to become reconciled with their fellow Somalis requires the tough decision of abandoning the secessionist pipe dream by the politicians in Hargaysa, which has for 25+ years estranged our beloved Habros from the bosom of Mother Somalia. That is the key here and we have no choice but to be patient until an astute politician takes the reigns in Hargaysa. A politician brave enough and wise enough who can muster the necessary tough political will to make the tough choice for our beloved Habros. In the meantime, it will have to be the usual Shimbiryahow heesa -- Hees wanaagsan heesa, I'm afraid.?

Odeygii Oodweyne ahaa waxaa ka soo hartay ereyga "maternal cousin"??? Oodweyne, sxb, suunka macawista ku dhuuqso!!! 2016 being an election year, incumbents like Silanyo and Culusow in the north and south of the country will stoop to all sorts of desperate tribal antics and if need be, tribally inspired violence to help them muscle themselves back into office. But only time will tell if it shall workout as planned--so your maternal cousinship nonsense will have to be put on the back burner until after the election.?

Malistar, The desperate actions of Culusow and his Shababist Moryaan-hutus leave us no choice but to beef up security. In the meantime, you just sit back and get back to me after the elections?

Fire and Ice By Robert Frost Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire. But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate To say that for destruction ice Is also great And would suffice.

@Oodweyne said: This is the old game of the Somalis, which is to advance one's clannish interest under the guise of larger political claim, be they under a national name or ... ?????? Oodka, was that remark a Freudian slip on your part or was it merely a harmless case of the pot calling the kettle black? In any case, how is your jigsaw puzzle coming together, now that our illustrious Eagle is flapping his royal wings over the hapless Habros --or should I say, over the "maternal cousins"-- who of late have resorted to issuing blanket amnesty to their fellow hapless Habros in Mogadishu, into an Olympic sport??

"Ball Of Confusion (That's What The World Is Today)" by The Temptations 1, 2... 1, 2, 3, 4, Ow! [Eddie:] People moving out, people moving in. Why, because of the color of their skin. Run, run, run but you sure can't hide. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Vote for me and I'll set you free. Rap on, brother, rap on. Dennis: Well, the only person talking about love thy brother is the...(preacher.) And it seems nobody's interested in learning but the...(teacher.) Segregation, determination, demonstration, integration, Aggravation, humiliation, obligation to our nation. Ball of confusion. Oh yeah, that's what the world is today. Woo, hey, hey. [Paul:] The sale of pills are at an all time high. Young folks walking round with their heads in the sky. The cities ablaze in the summer time. And oh, the beat goes on. [Dennis:] Evolution, revolution, gun control, sound of soul. Shooting rockets to the moon, kids growing up too soon. Politicians say more taxes will solve everything. [Melvin:] And the band played on. So, round and around and around we go. Where the world's headed, nobody knows. [instrumental] Oh, great googalooga, can't you hear me talking to you. Just a ball of confusion. Oh yeah, that's what the world is today. Woo, hey, hey. [Eddie:] Fear in the air, tension everywhere. Unemployment rising fast, the Beatles new record's a gas. [Dennis:] And the only safe place to live is on an Indian reservation. [Melvin:] And the band played on. Eve of destruction, tax deduction, city inspectors, bill collectors, Mod clothes in demand, population out of hand, suicide, too many bills, Hippies moving to the hills. People all over the world are shouting, 'End the war.' [Melvin:] And the band played on. [instrumental] Great googalooga, can't you hear me talking to you. Sayin'... ball of confusion. That's what the world is today, hey, hey. Let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya. Sayin'... ball of confusion. That's what the world is today, hey, hey. Let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya. Sayin'... ball of confusion.

@Tallaabo said: To me the commentator is more entertaining than the actual game. Anyway, isn't it better to be more honest and say the names of the two clans represented here instead of beating around the bush with land this land that :-D Pray tell, which "clans" do you speak of?