Somalis and Somali culture have been under assault for the last century. First we had to deal with the accursed Italians, then we had to deal with the Communists, and now we're dealing with the likes of Al Shabab and the Ugandans/Kenyans. My grandfather's generation was heavily influenced by the Italians, and many Somalis of that generation STILL have Italian mannerisms and their behavior is largely influenced by Italian culture. It's a shame

Tallaabo, that's an invalid comparison. The Christian Baker didn't refuse to serve them. He even gladly said, "I am willing to bake you a birthday cake or a graduation cake, but I won't bake a gay-wedding cake....because I don't believe in gay marriage so I refuse to participate in it." It's equivalent to me, as a Muslim, if I owned a business, forcing my Christian employees to pray Salat and firing them if they don't pray at all. That's a very different scenario.

LOL ISIS drew this map and called it their detailed "5 year plan" They are children, that's what they are. Children with AK-47's and pickup trucks, who actually think they have the capability of governing and running the affairs of a State.

It's been stated before, by intelligence sources as well as independent observers....that there are elements within Al Shabab which CAN be pacified and CAN be granted amnesty by the Somali Government in exchange for them giving up their fighting. But Godane was clearly not someone to be reasoned with. With his death, we'll see the fragmentation of Al Shabab and then the Federal Government can grant amnesty to the militants who seek it. While the rest of Al Shabab's most extreme elements can be gradually taken apart and defeated with better intelligence, a more capable Somali Army, and support from the local population. Already, the Somali Army does a bulk of the fighting in South Somalia. They just need more resources and to gain the trust of the local population to become an even more effective fighting force. Al Shabab is done saaxib. This is the beginning of the end of this disgusting group.

<cite> @xabad said:</cite> it sure is. we know deep down it hurt you & che, fake smiles aside. I was gonna curse you out, but I'm just too ecstatic right now to do that Somalia is one step closer to a sustainable peace alhamdulilah

This is a cause for celebration

LOL at the video I shouldn't have addressed him in this thread at all, and I'm well-aware of that. You're played-out saaxib. You're pathetic. Now STFU and end the discussion.

Liquor Stores were open in Turkey even in the 1980's and 1990's. It wasn't as if Erdogan opened them up, so what criticism does he get here? Do you really think it's even politically possible to outlaw alcohol in TURKEY out of all countries? Are you seriously kidding me here? There were protests in Turkey last year simply because Erdogan wanted to limit the sale of alcohol until 10pm. So he wanted to prevent people from buying alcohol after 10pm and people still wouldn't accept that. People were protesting the streets by the tens of thousands. We're living in the real world here, your fantasy idealism won't get us anywhere. I can try the same argument on you: You say you want a secular State. Well what kind of secular state would you like? China? Russia? United States? Brazil? Turkey? It's a cop-out statement. The ideal governments were that of the Rashidun Caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali, Uthman), as well as a large number of Umayyad, Abbasid, and Ottoman Caliphs. The Caliphate of Cordoba, Spain was superb as well. And so were some of the Islamic governments which existed in Nigeria and Mali. And you want to dismiss Umar Bin Khattab's government because "he was killed"....authubilah. I'm actually shocked with you here. So what if he was killed? Presidents and Kings are assassinated all the time, that's why most of them have bodyguards, so what big deal is it that Umar bin Khattab was killed by a Persian slave? That's like someone dismissing the United States because 4 American Presidents (Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Kennedy) were all assassinated. It's a weak argument. And no, I'm not mirqaan, caathi iska dhig. You're not doing yourself a favor here Open your mind

<cite> @Khadafi said:</cite> Agree with you on that but tell that to the black singe mom female cleaner with 3 kids to feed and how she with 16 hours working shifts five days a week will be able to afford higher education for her children. Higher education needs capital ama DOOLAR. But thats not a problem for a texas oil tycoon right? The statistic of 1% owning 90% is correct and valid. You even said so, ofcourse it will be the rich who owns the stockmarket. Why should the single mom even bother to look at wallstreet when she has 0 money before her salary. A person who works 16 hours and then has 0 money when the rent and food and etc are paid do not create and innovate wealth. They only join the system become the rat in the circle. Exactly as Marx said. Your argument "oh please do not use the race-card" is flawed. It's only 100 years ago when blacks were classified as property and when they were freed structural racism stopped them from accumulating wealth. Only after the 60-70 did they gain their fully rights. 50 years is a short time for a people with 0 wealth. Jews were classified as whites. They took "american names" and then became white people sectarian people, meaning that a jew helps a fellow jew, ilbaabka ey isku furaan. Thats something we agree upon but they are not a example to used to make your argument valid. 0 wealth? You do realize that Blacks had their own businesses, their own colleges, their own supermarkets, and even their own Sports leagues back in the 1940's right? You're acting as if Blacks had ZERO WEALTH, which is not true. In fact, the income-gap between Blacks and Whites hasn't changed since 1970. So even 44 years later, we're not really any better off. You haven't really given me any argument as to why a Black Man, in the 2000's, is unable to provide for himself? Why not? Because his great great great grandfather was enslaved? Because his grandfather went through discrimination in the 1960's? Are you kidding me saaxib? Is this is an excuse for a Black Man not taking the initiative to improve himself and improve his own community? Why is it, that in the Black Community we find high crime rates, incidences of black drug dealers selling drugs to pregnant women, and run-down homes? Are we gonna blame that on slavery as well? Are you telling me the Black Man is incapable of fixing himself and fixing his own community? Why can't he be self-reliant? Your argument is that "Jamal" who lives in Atlanta can't improve his own community because his ancestors in the 1920's went through oppression and humiliation. Second of all, no one is against welfare for those who truly need it. This example you keep citing of a "single mom who works everyday" has nothing to do with this. Sure, there's plenty of them who do exist. And sure, they should receive government assistance to help them. I don't think you'll find anyone who's opposed to that. But this has absolutely nothing to do with the topic. Most of the problems which afflict the black community are self-inflicted. But as long as we keep "Blaming Whitey", we can ignore our own personal failures and keep making excuses as to why our children graduate high-school without even being able to read properly, why most black fathers aren't involved in their children's lives, and why most black communities are full of crime! You can't control the behavior of someone else, but you can control your own behavior. So we should focus on fixing ourselves first, and then we can talk about this "structural racism" that is always mentioned here.

Khadafi, when I say "Islamic State", my ideal version of one was the society of Umar bin Khattab, and the Caliphate which he governed. And the subsequent governments weren't perfect (the Ummayyads, Abbasids, Ottomans) but the Muslim world went through tremendous development, while the society was strongly Islamic. You can't pretend this is a myth. This is history saaxib. I really suggest you read Will Durant's book about the Story of Civilization and he even describes how superb the Islamic State was during the Middle Ages. Erdogan knows he's dealing with an extremely secular State, and he knows that half of the country is very secular. So he's limited in his actions. He's smart because he knows if he pushes too far, it might backfire on him. But he's slowly pushing his country in a more Islamic direction, and this has been going on for over a decade. We have to be realistic here, but the establishment of an Islamic State is something that's on the minds of many Muslims. And that's not something you should run away from, but you should embrace this.

Saaxib, when the country grows richer, the poor also become much richer and have a higher standard of living, due to increased productivity. That's why a poor person in Singapore has a MUCH better lifestyle than a poor person in Bangladesh. The poor Singaporean still has a home, flush toilets, a TV, a cellphone, air-conditioner, refrigerator, a furnace, etc. These are things that a poor Bengali can only DREAM of having. It's all relative

Khadafi, Marx has long-ago been discredited. Yes there are problems with the global economy, but the forced collectivization of private property and private production is not the way to fix it. It's been tried before and it's led to massive failure each and every time. Just look at the differences between West Germany (free market) and East Germany (socialist). Or the differences between Poland (free market) and Ukraine (socialist). Or the differences between Chile (free market) and Venezuela (socialist). Or the differences between Botswana (free market) and Zimbabwe (socialist). Or the differences between Singapore (free market) and Jamaica (socialist). And what's funny is that Jamaica and Singapore were virtually equal in 1965. But now, the difference is like night and day. And it is pro-market policies in Singapore and Hong Kong which lead them to being extremely prosperous countries with a high standard of living not just for the rich, but for the middle class as well.

And you're talking about "classes" and the White Man keeping the Black Man down. We need to have some pride here! The Black Americans have a $1 trillion spending power! You're acting as if they're all subjugated and unable to create their own independent economy! There's 45 million of them, which is a large consumer base. So tell me Khadafi, what is preventing the Black Man in 2014 from creating and developing his own industries? Why is a Chinaman able to do it but not the Black Man? Why is a Jew able to provide for himself but not us? Look at the Jews today, they hire each other, educate each other, and do business with each other. Yet they're not even 1/7th of the population of Black Americans. WE DON'T WANT White Capitalists to "share the wealth." We don't need them to share the wealth at all, we can create our own wealth. Wealth is created saaxib, from the ground up, as a result of manufacturing, production and value-adding services. The Whites don't have to "share" anything with us. We can create our own wealth and our own economy independent of them, which is what literally every other ethnic group in the world has done. Except us, except the Black Man. Because for some reason we think we're incapable. We need to stop with this victim mentality, it won't get us anywhere. We've tried this "victim mentality" for the last 50 years and complaining about our problems will never solve them. Did you ever hear the Noble Prophet complain about his problems, or was he proactive in his own life and in his own community? Allah will never change the state of the people until they first change what is in themselves. Have some self-confidence. Have some pride in your own people and what you can achieve. And we need to stop asking the cadaan man for a hand-out because we should be able to look out for ourselves. If the South Koreans who occupy a very small piece of land, smaller than Somaliland, can create their own corporations and manufacturing plants than we can do it too.

Khadafi, it's actually indisputable that government policy is the cause of the 2008 financial meltdown. It was poor monetary policy (The Federal Reserve under Alan Greenspan) and poor social policy which led to this collapse. The Government, in an effort to boost home ownership, actually encouraged the Banks to lend to low income customers, by officially GUARANTEEING the debt. This led to homes doubling, and even tripling in prices in just a few years. Homes were getting more and more expensive by the month, because people were speculating and buying homes, only to sell them a few months down the line. This is the time period when people famously flipped homes for a living, as the prices of homes were increasing day-by-day. As a result, the stock market was over-leveraged and the entire economy crashed in 2008. But this was the result of bad government policy. It was the result of crony capitalism. And this has NOTHING at all to do with Marx's critique. Crony capitalism is bad for everyone. And BTW, 1% of America owns about 37% of the wealth, not 90%. And there's a reason for that, I can't go into super-details, but it has to do with the Federal Reserve pumping money into the stock market (and because it's usually the rich 1% who owns stocks, then of course they will be the ones who benefit). You wanna target the root of the problem? Target the corrupt government and crony capitalism. What we're looking for saaxib, is EQUAL OPPORTUNITY, not EQUAL RESULTS. We have to agree that some people are more talented, more motivated, and more capable than others. This is a fact. So of course, the results will never be equal and any attempt we make to force that to happen ALWAYS ends in disaster. We want equal opportunity for all people, and we need to make sure that the Government is a fair referee which won't get involved in the marketplace, unless it's to create a few common-sense regulations (safety rules, fraud rules, etc.) Saaxib, the famine was man-made. A large number of the famines in the 20th century were man-made. Even the famines in Somalia in 1992 and 2011 were man-made. It was completely preventable but yet it still unfortunately occurred. We can't deny this. Land reforms are a very important concept, and it's what helped lead to the rapid development of the United States, Europe, China, India and other countries. Today, food is far far cheaper in China/America/India than it was a mere 50 years ago, even though the population has doubled. The same goes for other countries, and it's because of the government taking a step back and not being as involved.

<cite> @Allyourbase said:</cite> Dude, you need to seriously grow up and stop following me around like a lost duckling. Anyone who would take the time to read our past discussions will clearly see the truth of your medieval dogma. Now kindly bugger off. I knew I shouldn't have said anything to the troll. But I felt like I had to add that part in. You're a proven liar AllYourBase, and a dishonest character. And your cowardice and inability to answer basic questions has been demonstrated many times on this forum. Now get the hell out of my face.

<cite> @Allyourbase said:</cite> Takale there may be some sense in my Islamic bashing too sxb, open your heart There is no sense in it. None at all. I know this isn't the time or place to get into such a discussion, but I had to add that part in. And this has been demonstrated many times on this forum by various members. You're not a serious individual.

Obviously, this is a long-term problem and not a short-term problem. Somalia has neither the will nor the capability to drill for oil....yet But things change, and if we lose the territory today, then 50 years from now our children could look back at this time period and regret the actions we didn't take to secure Somalia's borders. Russia sold the land of Alaska to the United States back in 1867, for only 7 million dollars. That's all it was, just 7 million dollars! I bet they assumed it was a worthless piece of land, so they gave it to America for such a low price. The Russians at the time had NO IDEA much oil exists in Alaska, and how much natural gas and minerals exist there. There are literally trillions of dollars of wealth that exists in Alaska, and I bet the Russians are kicking themselves today. We don't know the future, we can't predict what'll happen in 20 years, let alone 50 years from now. And we can't let Kenya take advantage of Somalia in our current moment of weakness, or it will be a serious source of regret for Somalia in the future. Whether Somalia is in chaos or not doesn't matter. The chaos will eventually end, sooner or later. And if we sell-out and give our territory to these Kenyans, then it will be the worst mistake we could possibly make.

What bothers me the most is that people like Tallaabo actively attempt to suppress Islam in the Middle East and Asia. Just look at Bangladesh. Muslim political activists are being KILLED by the secularist government as well as by their liberal supporters. Thousands of so-called "Islamists" are imprisoned, being tortured and were killed simply for advocating Islam in the political sphere. Look at what happened in Egypt, when Muslim Brotherhood supporters were being killed by the thousands, and this is all because they wanted to have an Islamic society in their own land. Look at what happened in Tunisia, in Libya, in Uzbekistan. Over and over, you see the Secular Regimes killing, imprisoning and torturing so-called "Islamists", and much of the general Liberal public supports these measures. Remember, these people are "tolerant" only until you disagree with them. Then their true face comes out.

<cite> @Tallaabo said:</cite> The western world privatised religion and made it a personal issue many centuries ago so any Muslim who is uncomfortable about the satanic way of life enjoyed in these heathen countries should stop whining and just get the f:ck out. Enjoining what's right and forbidding what's evil is one of the most BASIC concepts of Islam, you're really a strange one Tallaabo. “Whosoever of you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; and if he is not able to do so, then [let him change it] with his tongue; and if he is not able to do so, then with his heart — and that is the weakest of faith.” (Prophet Muhammad) Furthermore, isn't "change" something fundamental and very important to Western and global society? Didn't Martin Luther King Jr change America for the better? Didn't Mahatma Gandhi do the same for India? Would you consider MLK Jr or Gandhi's actions "whining" or are you only reserving this judgement for Muslims, because of your deep inferiority-complex? So it's okay for those guys to do it, but when Muslims or conservative Christians do the same thing it's suddenly bad? I'm very shocked with you, I really am.

Tallaabo, you know very well that the Secularists want to not just eliminate religion from the public sphere, but from the private sphere as well! Recently, in the United States, a Christian Baker refused to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple, in Colorado. The Baker said to them, "I don't mind baking you guys a birthday cake or a graduation cake, but I refuse to bake you a wedding cake because it goes against my Christian beliefs." I'm paraphrasing here, but this is what his message was. He encouraged them to go to another bakery in Colorado, where the Bakers were more liberal and more willing to bake a wedding cake for the gay couple. The gay couple could have gone to ANY OTHER bakery in Colorado, but no....they chose to sue this Christian Baker and attempt to force him to bake them a wedding cake. This is how Liberal Secularists are. They're intolerant, they want to force their lifestyle on others, and then they have the audacity to claim that they're the ones who are victims. This Christian Baker was fined, harassed, and the Government actually forced this man to bake them a wedding cake. He was even almost sent to prison. It's sickening, but this is the type of behavior you support. Freedom of religion does not mean freedom from religion, but to these people, they want to force their values on others. And then they have the nerve to complain and claim they're the victims. And Tallaabo, you bought into this utter garbage. Think for yourself saaxib. Don't let these xaywaan secularists tell you what to think. Here is the story of the Christian Baker: http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/colorado-baker-cakes-gay-weddings-panel-rules-article-1.1811676

What I'm really hoping for Ismahan, is for the United Nations to put this entire dispute "on hold", and for them to force Kenya to stop granting oil blocks to foreign oil companies in the region until after 3 or 4 years. Try and delay it as much as possible. This President only has 2 years left, so we need to do what we can to delay a court decision until then, because I really don't trust Hassan Sheikh to work in Somalia's best interests. Delay it until we get a new President. Hassan Sheikh knows he's never gonna be re-elected, so at least delay the decision until we have a new President who's not a complete doqoon.

I completely agree with the analysis of Erdogan...and this is why I'm such a strong supporter of Tayyip Erdogan and Mohamed Morsi. These men know that we're living in a decadent time-period. They know that the establishment of an Islamic System would be near-impossible today, especially with the deep corruption which still exists within some of the people in Egypt and Turkey. Morsi unfortunately failed in his objectives, but we need to try again. And try harder. And it was due to his poorly-calculated political mistakes. Which is why their strategy to slowly push their countries in a more Islamic direction is a good strategy. Turkey is far more Islamic today than it was in 2000. The difference is like night and day. People are far more religious today and the country is developing a more Islamic character. In a generation or two, there may be more widespread public support for an Islamic-Style Government in Turkey. And the same can happen in Egypt, in Tunisia, in Yemen, in Sudan and in many other countries including Somalia. After educating the people, obtaining grassroots support, we can then work towards the establishment of some "unity" between the various Muslim States, such as a military alliance like NATO or a political/economic alliance such as the European Union. This can then set the framework for a new Caliphate in the future. This is the methodology of Erdogan. This is the methodology of the Muslim Brotherhood. And I believe this strategy can ultimately succeed, by the Will of Allah.

I'm getting a really bad taste in my mouth while reading this thread. If this is true, then Hassan Sheikh is hands-down the worst Politician I've seen in my lifetime. He has zero political acumen and ZERO common sense. Whatever damage he does...must be undone by the next Somali President. And Kenya can see this President for the dooqon that he is. Which is why they're trying to annex a portion of Somalia's territory, while they still have the chance.

<cite> @Tallaabo said:</cite> It does not matter whether Godane is dead or alive. The bitter truth for you is any ameutur terrorist is able to kick your enclave's pirate butt :-D Is that why Al Shabab can't even get into a real battle with Puntland or the Somali Army? They have to resort to hit-and-run attacks because they know they can't fight a real battle.

<cite> @Khayr said:</cite> Your comment presumes this: - Advancement in the form of capitalism is the answer to all worries and sorrows. - That you if your goal is economic prosperity the. Capitalism is the only way. So how can minioritied have a different value system when there valued are the same as the rich. One group is dirty rich and the other is envy ridden for the rich. Btw, it is not an even and fair playing field in terms of education, housing and jobs for black people. A people that are synonmous with negative images. If you are an ambitious black person, then you are considered to have a chip on your shoulder. If you are an well and articulate black person, you are considered to be "angry and overly aggressive". Khayr, you're making the same mistake most people make when discussing economics. People assume that Economics is a way to answer people's worries and sorrows. We need to take a step back and be realistic in our expectations. No one expects a Lawyer to fix your car if it's broken. No one expects a Doctor to know how to engineer a building. Similarly, with economics, we shouldn't expect it to make our lives fulfilling or to achieve happiness. Economics is merely a tool, to allocate resources efficiently and to achieve material prosperity. That's ALL it is. And yes I agree, because in the United States, which is the richest nation in human history (an unbelievable 15 trillion dollars GDP) we have high rates of suicide and depression. We can contrast that to the Government of Umar bin Khattab, where the society was much much poorer but the people were much happier and society was much more cohesive. When you talk about it being "unfair" or "racial discrimination" when it comes to education, jobs, and housing for Black people, there are 45 million Black Americans, and if they actually worked hard to achieve their potential, then they wouldn't need the assistance of the White majority. They could hire each other, educate each other, and live amongst each other. What is so wrong with living in a Black part of town, and what is preventing Blacks from cleaning it up and making it a more pleasant place to live? Why can't Blacks in America police their OWN communities, set up their OWN schools and help advance their own society!? The advancement of the Black man in America will never come at the hands of someone else. It has to come from within. The Black man needs to help himself, and invest in his own community. The same goes for Somalis in Somalia. Mooge is always posting threads on this forum about Puntland, and how the Puntlanders (who are much poorer than Black Americans) are building their own businesses and their own infrastructure and helping themselves. So if Puntland can do it, why can't the Black Americans do it? What's stopping them? Self-reliance is key saaxib. How can you be proud of your own community if you're relying on someone else. We need to stop caring about what the White Man thinks. The thing about life is; no one gives you respect. You have to take it. You have--through your own actions--earn the respect of others. Many races had a very low opinion of the Chinese just 50 years ago, but now they begrudgingly respect them...because the Chinese earned it. Somalis were respected back in the 1970's, but today even the Kenyans look down on us. Even the Kenyans disrespect us. And it's our own fault because we put ourselves in that situation. We Somalis fought each other, were divided and as a result we lost the respect of the entire world.