Oo kaalay waagii anaa faarax ma noolayn miyaa? At any rate i think you could excel Arabics if you have time and commitment. You can start by enrolling Islamic University of Minnesota and learn the language from the great linguists like Sh. Waleed! Or better yet, if you are still single, you could indeed fly to Syria and marry an Arab woman. Option # 2 is better and has greater rate of success but it's probably more expensive and more riskier. So hurry up and register with IUM yaa wallah !

Shamsiyow, when I say something went wrong I really mean it. Something went wrong in early 90s and something went wrong in the last battle! I liked your observation of an imminent war in your ‘capacity as a private’ citizen and if indeed Courts leadership knew all about this and chose to face the knife so to speak without reasonable attempt to avoid it, I must conclude the opposite of what you have thus far concluded. Something went wrong that is! When your military intelligence tells you that a nation is in a clear war footing and it’s within your domain of knowledge that particular nation hardly does anything without west’s help and diplomatic approval, then you are expected to make a rational choice. Look yaa Shamsi, how could it be a sensible choice to go to a war in four different fronts given Courts logistical reach? Perhaps some wanted to just do and die. That’s all good and dandy—not to mention it has a clear religious ground. But that’s not what I wanted. I wanted them to win. And to win, yaa Shamsi, one needs to plan accordingly! Whatever the cause of the setback was, that plan for victory was missing---and that’s where my complaint lies bro. Setbacks are clearly universal experience. It happened to the Prophet (scw) and his companions. The battle of UHUD is a case in point. It was the premature rush to the spoils and the booty of the masrackah (amongst other widely discussed reasons) that turned Muslim’s early victory into a crippling defeat that threatened Prophet’s life. The Battle of Hunayn was another example where elation and unmeasured enthusiasm risked defeat of the Muslim army. When these sorts of things happened, Quran was not silent about it. Indeed it discussed the reasons that caused it and gave instructions of how to avoid the repeat of the same mistake. Today we don’t have the advantage of the revealing verses that the early Muslims had to instantly expose and pinpoint our exact errors in our proceedings. We do however have our reasoning, and in our case, the benefit of hindsight! Based on those two, there were some fundamental flaws in Courts policy formulation saaxiib. In the fear of this thing looking a thinly veiled blame game, though, let me shift gears and push the discussion into a positive terrain; given your insightful trip to the land of the muqaawamah what would you say the learned lessons are yaa Shamsi? Where should we go from here? What were the missing ingredients for a full success to have been attained?

You’re brilliant observer adeer but I do have my questions on these very presuppositions of yours! I have just seen this and cant write my response now so I will come back IA yaa Shamsi.

^^Brownka, the business of story-telling enticed me to post the article. I would love to catch such famous tales from the lips of the learned! The picture of the famous Finaa was an evening snapshot of the place. Learn some Arabic or French and go visit the place yaa Brown ! XX, i enjoy the company of story-tellers. If can comperhend Somali i would recommend you to listen to Idaajaa and Sheeko-xariir (translates to story-teller). Also if you can read Somali, Ibrahim Hawd is the most able somali fiction writer i've come across. That man is gifted with a marked brilliance of eloquence and his writings are dyed (unlike Idaajaa, who’s good at narrating it) with a noticeable beauty of scholarship! Let me know if you need further references. Waryee Paragon, you know someone who's going to the place eh? Are you implying that it could be me ?

^^One can’t conceal own lame especially when it’s quite noticeable like ours is, or can he yaa Duke? Ethiopia is clearly the elephant in our room and any political commentary on Somalia wouldn’t be complete without mentioning our western neighbor adeer. I honestly think the current framework will not outlast the old man. Of course one would hope things change to the better and by his departure the place would be better shape than the one in which he found it in.

Rain-clouds pour as it were if it has thundered, yaa Khalaf . Marra waaxidah adeer; we all know now that you are among the Tigre tank riders ! As for your q, I think its premise is wrong (what makes you think there will be another tfg after the old man?) hence shouldnt be honored with a serious answer! A better question would be: will Somalia break from Ethiopia’s sphere of influence or will it disintegrate into mini enclaves as all actualities on the ground suggest? If you bet on the first, how and who will lead such a break?

Originally posted by Allamagan: Xiin, Adeer, go to the mosque and make dua for yourself. Cuqdad ku kore . ^^A good suggestion of course. When you substract your poppycock that is! You inturn need to grow out of this Horn-like weakness of being hyper sensetive to anything that remotely relates to Kismayo! For if you continue to be clan-centric like you are now you are risking to perish in sorrow's hands! Waan sii carraabaye, ha la aayaro with the tribal charges, Khlafna si gaara wax haloogu sheego wuu shiddeysanyahay'e!

^^Weak ones always ride on the tail of my arguments. Why harbor such a deep cuqdad against a mere forumer adeer. Allamagan’s threats though not credible are understandable ! The promise has once again been broken. Waryee Khalaf baro sida loo doodo adeer. Weligaa dockayeer lama noqdo saaxiib. Waa ceeb wallaahi! Generale, based on your assumptions things will be better in the near future. Based on my observations on the other hand things will spiral out of control if some radical policy shift is not implemented by the world to deprive Tigre from the political support they thus far enjoyed and support genuine peace and reconciliation process in Somalia. We will see where it all ends IA.

^^Generale, events are still in their prime, what faults would mine be if I suggest let us wait and see if your fablings hold true?

Ethios are good-doers; coming from you i can take it yaa Duke! If anything else you been consistent with your blind march to support tfg. But it's a quality which i don not admire!

Originally posted by General Duke: ^^^Bravo saxib, keep supporting them, but give the winners a chance. A fair comment but show me a genuine winners adeer! Seeking a reposing moment under the shade of the Tigre tanks does not necessarily mean, lest you mistaken, you won yaa Duke! Khalaf, yours is recursively childish argument! What point are you trying to make? When one attempts to make a point one does it with clarity. We need not read between lines as you instructed to understand your charge. Let me guide you here adeer which is it: 1-Xiin supports Courts, and blindly at that. 2-Xiin harbors clannish motives and accuses others his very ills. Hanagu harraadin meesha, ama wax sheeg ama take back your silly comment.

^^The Ethiopians with their artillery precision did!

Sadex xarigle, it’s not a positive deed to kill the innocent. But again how would one make such a distinction when one swims in dreams of victory! Pi,Why wish my outing adeer ? Didn’t know I was such a bothersome character for you! Or is it that you dislike diverse views and don’t appreciate the injection of some pertaining truth into this fora, which i often do, especially when the gentle General floods us with his unfiltered and raw reporting?

Originally posted by Khalaf: Xiin how does dancing and the choirs sound? read between the lines awoowe, i dont like to assume however the comment of yours i quoted added to your always making excuses for the courts speaks for itself adeer...... Ah so you assume i support the Courts for tribal reasons miyaa? War illeer ibtilo! Dont disappoint me adeer tell me (not us any more) what's your suspect all about. I have a little time on my hands and i promise i would be generous enough to address your concerns! OK. ps--that i was Court supporter is a well known thing in these boards. The fact that they lost means nothing as far as my support goes.

^^Why?

^^Your believe is wrong. I don't know what's up! Be counted adeer and give a try to tell us what you meant by your silly comment!

^^True Allah's sunnah doesn't change, but i am afriad that you dont understand what Allah's sunnsh is!

^^Weak arguments are the trenches of weak people yaa Khalaf! Tell the gallery what Horn said about Xiin that you’re beginning to buy, will ye?

Originally posted by General Duke: ^^^Saxib, the TFG has crushed the clan courts and humbled the warlords of Mogadishu, it controls the port, airport, presedential villa, and all the check points of the city. ^^Give the credit where it's due adeer. It was Ethiopia with the help of America that exacted the defeat. The desparation is comming from both sides for a good reason. The Ethio-tfg part are dolling out nightly artilleries to certain suspected neighborhoods in Mogadishu and it seems their act is one of a revenge rather than security operation intended to pacify the city. It’s becoming quite apparent that the framework that brought tfg to the city is no longer sustainable. For one can’t govern with raining down bombs on the very subject he claims to have secured their loyalty. Since you have highlighted why one side of this equation is desperate, I thought, you urgently need a reminder that your cow is not holy either. So aayar with the swagger saaxiib

^^^Yaa Brown, look at the Jaamic al-Finaa---who wouldn't want be there and talk to the reciters of alfa-Leyl-Wa-Leyl .

The story-tellers of Marrakesh By Richard Hamilton BBC, Morocco In the Moroccan city of Marrakesh, you can still find men who tell ancient stories that have been handed down from generation to generation. But with modern technology offering new forms of diversion and entertainment, young people are ignoring the story-tellers and for the first time in perhaps 1,000 years the tradition is dying out. Legend has it that the muezzin - the man who called the faithful to prayer - at the top of the main mosque in Marrakesh had to be blind. It was thought that a sighted man might gaze down from the Koutoubia, as it is called, into the sultan's palace below and see his harem. But a sighted man would also see the wild teaming maelstrom of Marrakesh's main square or Jemaa al-Fna. He would see fire-eaters and fortune-tellers, acrobats and snake-charmers. For all human life is here: if you walk into the square you will be besieged by men with monkeys and women trying to squeeze henna onto your hands. And then there is the noise: the square is a cacophony of drums, reed pipes and songs performed by musicians from sub-Saharan Africa. But if you can find a quiet corner in the square you might come across the city's hidden gems. A Thousand and One Nights He tells tales of sultans, thieves, wise men and fools, he speaks of mystics, genies, viziers and belly dancers They may not be the most obvious entertainers and they are certainly not the loudest, but if you can seek out a story-teller or a halaka, you are in for a treat and an old one at that. Because story-telling in Morocco is as old as the hills, and as ancient as the Atlas mountains. I found Moulay Mohammed, a bearded man with a few missing teeth, sitting in the square in his grey jellabah surrounded by a circle of onlookers. He is 71 and has been a story-teller for 45 years. He used to come as a boy and listen to the old men in the square tell their stories and he was so entranced by them that he became one himself. He says he knows most of the Old Testament and all of A Thousand and One Nights. According to legend, to prevent her murderous husband King Shahryar from killing her, the Persian Queen Scheherazade told a different story every night for 1001 nights. Moulay Mohammed is like a modern day Scheherazade: he tells tales of sultans, thieves, wise men and fools, he speaks of mystics, genies, viziers and belly dancers. Under threat Moulay Mohammed told me it is not just what he says that counts but how he says it. Young Moroccans would rather watch TV soap operas than listen to a story-teller much less become one themselves Even if you do not understand a word of what he says, it is still fascinating to listen to a halaka. You can sense the drama of the story and feel its suspense. His words are precious and they seem to hang in the air. Today more than 40% of all Moroccans are illiterate, so the oral tradition is vital. Of course story-telling is a form of entertainment, but it is much more than that. Like the parables of the New Testament, the stories are ways of conveying ideas, values and philosophies. But all this is under threat. While there used to be 20 or so halakis in Marrakesh, there are now only about half a dozen and they are all old men. After more than a millennium, the art of the halaka is on the wane. Young Moroccans would rather watch television soap operas than listen to a story-teller much less become one themselves. Disappearing yarns However the United Nations cultural organisation, Unesco, has intervened to try to save the stories as part of the world's oral heritage. It is even recording some of them on the internet, so modern technology may yet come to the rescue of these wondrous tales. I asked Moulay Mohammed if he would pass his skills on: "If someone wants to come and learn from me they can, but it is not easy," he said. "It takes years to remember the stories." And was he worried that his craft might one day die out? "Ah, only God knows the answer to that. Today there are story-tellers. That is all I know." Another old man was sitting in the crowd hanging on Moulay Mohammed's every word. Did he think the story-tellers would still be here tomorrow? "Moulay Mohammed is one of the best in Marrakesh, and we like him very much" he said. "But if he disappeared, a lot of his yarns would disappear too." Google Earth And what, I wondered, did Moulay Mohammed make of television? "Television?" he laughed, "why it is something out of this world. This is real life here in the square. It is much better to sit in the square in the sun, as you are doing now, than in some dark room with a television!" And sitting in the square under an azure sky, I thought Moulay Mohammed was probably right. Looking up at the pink rooftops of Marrakesh, the Atlas mountains and the fabulous Koutoubia mosque, it was hard to imagine a place I would rather be. There may not be a blind muezzin any more in the minaret of the Koutoubia but the story of the men who could not look down on the sultan's harem strikes a familiar cord now. The Moroccan government has blocked the internet device Google Earth so that people cannot look from above into the grounds of the king's sumptuous royal palaces. Perhaps in 1,000 years people will be telling a story about that.

^^The reason you and others opposed Courts was primarily based on your perception of them as an entity that would not satisfy your political/clannish aspirations in Kismayo, no? No matter. I don’t view Islamist term in a negative light. It might’ve been coined with a negative intent to depict Muslims in a bad light. But remember Caliphate is constantly invoked with an equally negative motive. Hijabi, Jihadi, and Salafi are also terms that are used by the media to supposedly harm Muslim image and give a wrong perception of us. But as a Muslims you shouldn’t conform to the usage and the implications of these terms by West and its media, adeer. Instead, you should stay with the original meaning of these terms, which’s positive and constructive.

^^LOL@rounded them to be trained. Tigree good-doers never cease to astonish us eh! So the Ethios are in direct control of the city after they couldn't trust thier subordinates. What are the political ramifications of this yaa abu ansaar? Do you think this will hasten the fall of tfg as it threatens the adhoc tribal groupings he put together to fight against Courts men?

Aamiin.

^^What's wrong with the term 'Islamists' Axmadow?