LOL@ Shias not being real Muslims... Islam according to DoctorKenney (also, Layzie was on to something... you know way too much about this person's genitalia). Bye.

You can google that yourself. Here's one book on sex reassignment surgery in Iran.

<cite> @Che -Guevara said:</cite> But I think DK can make a good argument (that's he drops the rumor talk) from religious perspective. We might not like what he says but religion would side with him. Religion would side with him on what? Denouncing transgender individuals? Nope -- there is no one religious perspective on this, and sex reassignment surgery is considered permissible by MANY Islamic scholars (ie. Iran, Al-Azhar, etc). What "good argument" has DK made in this thread?

<cite> @Naxar Nugaaleed said:</cite> lol @ LayZie, as for the rest, they say if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all. This. I have many friends who knew Sumaya and are hurting right now, and everyone who knew her has said she was a wonderful person. I knew this thread would turn into a cesspool of hate and bullsh*t. Leave the dead alone.

<cite> @Tallaabo said:</cite> Are they all Canadian Somalis? There is clearly something different about this community. I am waiting for Saffrez's reply too :-D There was a British rapper posted but burahadeer edited his post to remove it and make Canadians look bad Anyway, nothing about these videos bothers me except for the lack of talent.

They destroyed thousands of ancient manuscripts and books as well. Barbaric.

Yes, she's a professor and writer too.

Allahu naxariisto, I really liked his work. Rutgers Mourns Loss of Dr. Said Samatar, Longtime History Professor, Scholar, Authority on Somalia Joint Statement from Chancellor Nancy Cantor, Provost Todd Clear, and Dean Jan Lewis, Faculty of Arts and Sciences It is with deep sadness that we announce that Said S. Samatar, Professor of History, died on Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 24, 2015), two weeks after sustaining injuries in a fall. Dr. Samatar was born in 1943 in the Ogaden, a region of Ethiopia inhabited by Somalis. He spent his childhood as a camel-herder, coming to the United States to study at Goshen College, where he earned his B.A. while working as a welder during the day to support his family. In 1979 he received his Ph.D. in African History from Northwestern University. After teaching at Eastern Kentucky University, he joined the History Department at Rutgers University–Newark in 1981. One of the world’s leading authorities on the history of Somalia, Dr. Samatar was the author of several books, including Oral Poetry and Somali Nationalism: The Case of Sayyid Mahammad 'Abdille Hasan (Cambridge University Press, 1982), and Somalia: Nation in Search of a State (co-authored with David Laitin, Westview Press, 1987). He edited the volume In the Shadow of Conquest: Islam in Colonial Northeast Africa (Red Sea Press, 1992). For the past 25 years Dr. Samatar served as editor of the journal The Horn of Africa. At the time of his death he was working on a book tentatively entitled Fool’s Errand: The Search for a Central Government in Somalia. He published many articles and essays as well and lectured widely, both in the U.S. and abroad. An astute observer of the history and politics of his native region, Dr. Samatar was widely sought after by the media. In 1992, he went to Somalia as a consultant and interpreter for Ted Koppel, the anchor of the ABC news program Nightline. He appeared on the BBC, CBS, and CNN International as well as PBS' The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, and he was quoted in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, Newsweek, and U.S. News & World Report. Dr. Samatar’s advice was constantly sought and freely given with candor and often with his characteristic sense of humor. The issues were serious and treated so, but, as his colleagues and students well know, Dr. Samatar never failed to see the absurd in the human condition, however painful it may have been at the time. He was a colleague engaged in the affairs of Rutgers and the larger world, a joyful dining companion, an engaging and popular teacher, and a true friend to his colleagues. His is a voice that will be deeply missed by all who had the privilege to know him. Dr. Samatar, a resident of South Orange, is survived by his wife, Lydia Samatar; daughter, Sofia Samatar; son Delmar Samatar, and four grandchildren. The suddenness of this passing might make it especially hard to grapple with this loss. Please remember that we have counseling services available for students, faculty, and staff. Students at Rutgers University - Newark may contact the Counseling Center at 973.353.5805. Employees across Rutgers may contact Rutgers Human Resources/Faculty Staff & Assistance Program at 848.932.3956. Dr. Samatar’s family has asked that contributions in memory of Dr. Said Samatar be made to the Rutgers University Foundation care of Marcel Vaughn-Handy. Please put "in memory of Said Samatar" in the memo section. Checks should be sent to: Rutgers University Foundation, c/o Marcel Vaughn-Handy, 360 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Hill Hall, Room 323, Newark, NJ 07102-1801. The family has informed us that it will not be holding services. The Departments of History and African American and African Studies will host a tribute event; details will be provided once arrangements have been made. In shared sorrow, Nancy Cantor, Chancellor Todd Clear, Provost Jan Ellen Lewis, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Sad news. I hope people on this forum can keep it respectful or stfu if they only have hateful thoughts to express about a dead person.

The reason he's the runner he is today is due to the world class training available to him as a British athlete. What resources are available to naturally gifted athletes in Somalia/SL to develop their talents so they can compete internationally? None. Not to mention he's grown up in the UK and feels he's running for his country now, despite what idiots like Vernon have to say.

Looks Ethiopian to me. But who cares?

Mods: please state that you've edited a post if you are going to do so, instead of rewriting my comment. I'd rather have a post deleted completely than have my words and their meaning altered. Far more insulting terms than "stupid" get a pass here on SOL, and it's my right to refer to someone's logic and line of thinking as stupid. In this case, it's more than that, it's also misinformed and dangerous. This is all to say that I didn't say "I am in awe," burahadeer. I maintain that you have no idea what you're talking about and have zero grasp of an issue that affects the majority of Somali women. That's not up for debate, it is a fact whether you recognize it or not. The ignorance is astounding. Anyway, I've lost interest in this thread, so I'm out.

Meanwhile in Boston, we're having our fourth blizzard this month.

I am in awe, burahadeer.

Oh look, Western journalists spouting bull about Somalis: Western politicians pretending female circumcision is an issue in the Somali territories: More Western activists milking the non-existent issue:

I edited to add this to my post: Edna Adan’s hospital in Hargeisa, for example, started recording circumcision figures (and mode) for all women who visit the hospital for pregnancy related care, and found that 97% of their patients (3833 women) were circumcised and of those, 99% (3796 women) had pharaonic circumcision. <cite> @burahadeer said:</cite> 97% and 95% hahaaa, how you find that out. absolutely NONSENSE, you relying on old books or western journalist that stayed for 5 days and made things up relying on old same books and then you run away with it. You have to stay here years as I did and find out how society have changed last 30 years and not run to your nearest library without even looking when was it written. I'm sure you're walking around Hargeisa polling women about whether they've been circumcised or not, and this is all a grand Western conspiracy against Somalis.

<cite> @burahadeer said:</cite> ^^ might still be true in some areas of Somali territories but I'm very much aware in Somaliland and they instead use the "sunna" which they cut the clitoris only.Still stupid but much better than before. of what I heard many families in major urban areas don't even practice....you have to remember in this part many many families either came directly from abroad or have diaspora relatives and acquintances who influenced thm.Urge you to find out your nxt return. Don't make stuff up about issues you know nothing about. Somaliland alone has female circumcision rates of upwards of 97% - which is about the same in the rest of the Somali territories - and 95% of those are infibulated (pharaonic). This includes urban areas too -- Edna Adan's hospital in Hargeisa, for example, started recording circumcision figures (and mode) for all women who visit the hospital for pregnancy related care, and found that 97% of their patients (3833 women) were circumcised and of those, 99% (3796 women) had pharaonic circumcision.

DoctorKenney, how do you know these activists are not engaged with or involved in advocacy efforts in the Somali region? And what makes you think "talk" isn't important? The fact is that this is a practice rooted in a particular mindset and set of beliefs, and the most important thing that can be done is educate people about it and help them "un-learn" the logic sustaining the practice. Only by talking about it can actual change occur. And that includes in the diaspora, which you wrongly assume is not a site for female circumcision as well. <cite> @burahadeer said:</cite> practice is very very low nowadays, almost non existant except maybe in far edged rural areas. This is not true at all. The majority of Somali women are circumcised and continue to be (not to mention the fact that Somalis practice the most violent form of female circumcision called pharoaonic circumcision, which not only involves cutting but sewing women closed), and it has actually increased in recent decades. During Siyaad Barre's regime, anti-circumcision health campaigns were successful to a certain degree in bringing circumcision numbers down, but the civil war and increasingly socially conservative dynamics of Somali society since have only made things worse.

Haha, I saw three people skiing last Monday! I'm okay for tonight, but might have to venture out tomorrow if the snow stops and see if anything is open.

We've had 50 inches of snow here in Boston in the last two weeks, and Massachusetts has declared a state of emergency. They are dumping snow in the ocean because they no longer know how to manage record snowfall. My university is closed for the second day in a row tomorrow (though I'm not complaining), and I am feeling stir-crazy in my apartment. Low on food too

What's good, SP? I like their look and sound as Faarrow a lot more. They had another song that came out around that time, "Say My Name," which was also great. Not sure why they aren't getting more buzz, but Canadians don't seem to break into the US market so easily. Someone needs to get Drake on one of these songs lol

I'm not following, DK. How can you possibly bring up Somalia's homogeneity and not see how that undermines the point you're trying to make? What is perhaps the most unstable nation-state in the world is also one of the most homogenous. How does your simple theory of global conflict explain that one? If diversity is the reason for conflict, shouldn't Somalia be the ideal type, the proof that homogeneity leads to peace, stability, harmony? I was trying to avoid this thread because it's a poor argument with no basis in historical analysis, despite your claims. Ethnicity is not a static thing, difference and diversity have existed throughout history, yet every example you've cited here of "diversity not working" is relatively recent. Categories change and transform over time, including clan identities in Somalia, which have been politicized in ways they have never been before in the last 30 years. There are multiple factors that interact to produce conflicts, and difference (whether racial, ethnic, religious) is simply a proxy for issues like political power and control, economic exploitation and domination, etc. Is France's inability to comprehend and "tolerate" its Muslim population evidence that diversity doesn't work? Or is it the aftermath/afterlives of colonialism and violence, as the former colonial subjects of the French empire are now living IN France to contend with? Every place you mention has its own history, context and dynamics, and pinning it all on diversity being the issue is reductive and asinine. And Europe is hardly moving towards "reestablishing mono-ethnic states," they have moved towards a supranational state called the European Union. How's that for diversity?

This seems tame for her.

I've only ever seen it as a name (ie. Meecaad Miigane), and it seems to be regional, Awdal and Djibouti perhaps. It doesn't mean stubborn -- here are a few definitions in my Somali dictionary: 1. Miiggan - magac loo bixiyo gabadh hannaan wanaagson oo gaarinimo iyo firfircooni laga filayo 2. Miiggan - (tilmaame) jidh buuxa leh oo firfircoon 3. Miigganaan -ta - wax miiggan ahaan 4. Miiggane - magac loo bixiyo wiil dhiiran oo hawl-karnimo laga filanayo

<cite> @ismailJabar said:</cite> Safferz..you move to Cali and rest assured you would b stuck at the same economical condition as you left off from Canada ...instead move to Phoenix or the state of Nevada, they need nurses over there lol what makes you think I'm a nurse?