Classified, what do you know about Khalid Abou El Fadl, when you are unfamiliar with his thinking and haven't read one of his books?

Khayr;983351 wrote: We can't have a serious debate with you when you read munafiqs like Khalid Abou Fadl. He lacks credibility in my eyes because he gets his glory and praises from insulting Islam and muslims. What are you talking about? Have you read any of his work? I'd love some citations, if you could kindly pinpoint where he's insulted Islam and Muslims and elaborate further on exactly what makes him a hypocrite. I won't touch your takfir re: Professor Khorchide, since I hope the absurdity of your statements are apparent enough to anyone reading, but I do think it's amazing that you represent precisely the position of anti-intellectualism and unthinking dogma that he, Abou El Fadl and others are talking about. Ironic, really.

Interesting interview, and I hope people read it and understand his provocations come from the Islamic tradition itself, as we have a number of the unthinking fundamentalists he describes here on SOL. Thanks for sharing. A really great elaboration on the topic is "And God Knows the Soldiers: The Authoritative and Authoritarian in Islamic Discourses" by Khaled Abou El Fadl, he talks about how contemporary Islamic discourse and its self-appointed authorities homogenize Islam, discourage critical thinking and obscure the diversity of Islamic jurisprudential history.

Hawdian;983214 wrote: Pro. Samatar Is a intellectual who knows about the reality of african politics . I am sure he would do great work in what ever position he is elected to in rep. of Somaliland . Walewyn should conctrete solving the issues facing them. Pro. Samatar has been a supporter of somaliweyn for more than 2 decades but when he saw the people of walewyn he saw rightly that in MOG he was not a citizen but mere guests. This what Pro. Samatar said about walewyn ". I went there to give my support knowledge and experience as an educator but where i went everybody had an Doctorate" n o shame walewyne where other countries support their best and brights in xamar they humiliate them. Thank god the good Professor is back in his homecountry Somaliland where he will appriciated I think you're being too generous and easily accepting of his narrative. He didn't have a change of heart, he had a change of strategy and is now positioning himself for political power in Somaliland after failing in Somalia. If things went as he hoped in Somalia (or expected rather, because he's that arrogant), he would not have changed his tune.

Cadale;983213 wrote: safferz inaar salaan sare, maxaad sheegtay dee? I'm great huuno, seetahay? Busy as usual, but the end of the semester is in sight... booked my flight home for December 22 Alpha Blondy;983215 wrote: Saffz mire, miyaa? maxaad tidhi? bal igu ceeli? :cool: Well, what else can you do with an ancient stamp?

Alpha Blondy;983203 wrote: some old man gave me a 5,000 year old artifact today. it's a strange looking metal object. very heavy and used as a stamp. it apparently belonged to a Jewish King. WTF! Get it appraised when you're in London and try to sell it to the British Museum

Khayr;983135 wrote: All those movies have black males as slaves, servants or pitch black pirates. Great things to aspire to and recant about over and over again right? Hollywood doesn't give a damn about black history. They retell these stories and almost always and I mean always - there is a white protagonist that some how has the power to free that black person from darkness. I just don't get the stoopidity of these negroes that want to play the slaves or thiefs or servants. Could you imagine Brad Pitt wanting to play the role of a jewwish thief? No such thing right, I mean about a jeeww being a thief - ever! Where is there a white protagonist saving black people in this film?

Oiler;983175 wrote: When topics are being discussed on public forums try to not personalize it, try to not make it about you (ex. I am phd student, the school you go to, how much you make, posting pictures of your family etc..) debate/discuss on issues without all that. What are you talking about? I've said I'm a grad student and posted baby pictures before, and there's nothing wrong with that. I've never said how much I make (why would I, when I'm a broke student) or where I go to school. What I did here is give a sense of expenses where my parents live, after Alpha made a comment asking why people don't buy in cash and later stated that $10k is enough in his area (which isn't even enough to buy a home in Hargeisa). If that makes you uncomfortable, ignore it, but don't tell me what I should or shouldn't post.

Che -Guevara;983120 wrote: I thought it was out today hehe Depends where you are New York and a few other cities opened last week, Boston and other select cities this weekend. Everywhere else on November 1st.

Naxar Nugaaleed;983114 wrote: Can't wait to see it. Believe it comes out on the first of November although am sure it's already showing in Ny and LA Yes, it's showing here in Boston as part of the limited release but opening nationwide on November 1st. Classified;983116 wrote: And they say "slavery has been abolished in America". People don't realize, but such movies like this is meant to give pride to the younger White generations and show the younger "Black" generations their place in history and in humanity. Huh? It's quite the the opposite, films like this shed light on a dark chapter of US history that most people feel detached from and are painfully ignorant about. It's absurd that you think white people portraying slave owners and racists and torturing slaves in the antebellum South is supposed to give white people today a sense of pride, if anything what these films do is make viewers deeply uncomfortable about race in American history, disrupt the notion of romantic Southern plantations populated by happy slaves (something you DID see in older Hollywood films like Gone With the Wind) and force people to see the barbarity of slavery and the humanity of the enslaved. In the same way the miniseries Roots was a watershed cultural event for bringing the history of slavery to American televisions, this film has the potential to be (and is, from everything I've heard so far) one of the greatest films on American slavery ever made. This year also looks like it may even make history for the number of black actors nominated for Oscars, with films like The Butler, 12 Years a Slave, Captain Philips, etc all getting Oscar buzz. Classified;983116 wrote: Hollywood never makes any movies with famous actors depicting how Fircoon enslaved the Jews or how different African empires once had European/White slaves. Food for thought. Sure there are (Charlton Heston in the Ten Commandments comes to mind)... but none of those examples are nearly as important or central to the US context as the enslavement of black people was, so you have no point.

Abbaas;983102 wrote: I did watch Django Unchained and i should say it was great to see, i don't know if i'm going to see this one because i'm this time into Action | Adventure | Fantasy/sci-fi movies like X-men & Avatar e.t.c not reality Films. Hadda xitaa raadis baan ku jiraa si aan u helo similar movies . Yes, it's definitely more of a film for people who like historical drama and strong acting performances. I like the movies you mentioned too, but sometimes I like the heavier films too

Alpha Blondy;983100 wrote: someone is rich. caajib. modesty is a virtue, abti. It's not rich, that's life in qurbaha and the expenses associated with the cost of living here. Have you forgotten?

Supposed to be the best movie of the year... anyone else planning to see it? I'm hoping to squeeze some time in during the week to go. I've read Solomon Northup's memoir before and I like Steve McQueen's other films, so I'm looking forward to seeing this film.

When I saw the link was from the Ethiopian government, I assumed it would be the distinction between Somali nationals and ethnic Somalis (like those in kilika shanaad, who are citizens of Ethiopia). But they say ethnicity here, so it makes no sense.

Tallaabo;983052 wrote: These prices are absurd, aren't they? Yes they are, and why a lot of people are buying homes further and further away from the city, where homes are STILL expensive but not absurdly so. There is no way of buying a house with savings alone anymore, so the question is mortgaging vs. renting. Also Alpha... houses aren't that cheap in Hargeisa either, so get outta here with that $10k. That won't even cover land there.

Tallaabo;983045 wrote: This house in Britain costs more than $1.5 million This bungalow in Toronto sold for close to $1.2 million:

Tallaabo;983036 wrote: It may be vile to you but not to those watching him and many others who see it just as a harmless entertainment. Actually some view sports such as football, the game you love as hard-core pornography:p Few things are more obviously homoerotic than sports, especially wrestling/MMA

Alpha Blondy;983030 wrote: in my world $10,000 will suffice, thanks. what sort of house costs $400k Prof. Saffz? taking a mortgage out is a confirmation of being reer galbeed. it's haram. it proves to me and all other self-respecting persons that y'all are bonkers. what's wrong with y'all, baal? can't y'all invest this dosh in y'alls homelands? aren't y'all aware of the huge potential to build y'all's dream house for next to nothing? i'm not surprised by y'all's ignorance. wayoow....because y'all are all about 2.4 children, a car, a pet - preferably a cat and a mortgage. DISGUSTING. lol $10k is less than what my parents had to pay to put in new flooring in like two rooms last month. $400k is cheap for a house, average property in Toronto is over $500k I believe. You'd be surprised by what a million dollar home looks like.

Alpha Blondy;983024 wrote: i don't understand people who take mortgages out. it's foolish. just pay it in cash. Do you have $400k lying around?

Just watched the first episode, well done Professor Gates! A little iffy about his analysis of slavery in Africa, but overall quite good. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

Good effort, but a little stiff in the hips and his booty poppin needs work. 6/10

Brilliant from beginning to end.

Cadale;982943 wrote: whats the special shakes? ma subag xoolo baa? lol nah, I remember my aunt telling me they're sold in stores and that women she knows have been taking them. Maybe something similar to Boost or Ensure, on top of their regular meals? Horta does anyone know when fatness became attractive in Somali culture, rather than the traditional ideal of a curvy/shapely woman (thick, but not huge)? Seems recent.

Haatu;982937 wrote: Cayil lama naco, lama diidi karo, waa deeq Ilaah Safferz no need to kill yourself with all the running dee Inaba caadhi maaha But seriously... there are women who drink special shakes to get fatter in Hargeisa. Bleached skin and obese is the look.

And Gawker's editor's piece after today's Toronto Star article: The Toronto Police Department Watched Me Watch Rob Ford Smoking Crack Five months ago, I flew to Toronto to meet a crack dealer. We hung out together briefly in a car, he showed me a video on his iPhone of the mayor of Toronto smoking crack cocaine, and then he split. Subsequent events unfolded, and for reasons that escape me and make me fundamentally question my settled views on Canada and Canadian-ness, Rob Ford is still the mayor of Toronto. Anyway, it turns out the cops were watching us the whole time. It was, frankly, a little unnerving to be hanging out with a twitchy crack dealer in the parking lot of a large building devoted to low-income housing (even though, this being Canada, it was nicer and cleaner than most Manhattan residential towers). So to learn, via the Toronto Star's Jayme Poisson, that the crack dealer who was showing me the video was the subject of a Toronto Police Department surveillance operation during our meeting is rather comforting in retrospect. I did not know this at the time, but the crack dealer I met with is named Mohamed Siad. He has since been arrested in a broad sweep of Somali-Canadian youths purportedly involved in the drug-and-gun trade. And according to a Toronto Police Department surveillance report obtained by Poisson, a team was watching Siad at the very moment we were meeting. They apparently suspected that I was there to purchase a gun from him. From the Star: It was Tuesday, May 14, and police had learned Siad was to be involved in a possible firearms deal. They’d covertly followed him from his nearby apartment and planned to wait for a transaction, then arrest everyone involved, according to a police surveillance report.... As it turns out, Siad’s meeting with that “unknown party” was the same day, place and time that John Cook, the editor of U.S.-based website Gawker, met with two men trying to sell the Ford “crack video.” (Cook has seen a picture of Siad and believes he was the man who played him the video.)... While the report offers no details about the cellphone up for sale, it does give a time-stamped sequence of Siad’s movements: 2:53 p.m.: The police crew follows Siad as he drives from his apartment on Richgrove Dr. to the nearby Dixon Rd. highrises. 3 p.m.: Siad parks his black Honda Civic underground at the apartment building at 370 Dixon Rd. 3:12 p.m.: Detectives learn Siad is selling a cellular phone, not a gun. 3:30 p.m.: Surveillance is discontinued for the afternoon and officers attend a debriefing. It's not clear from the Star report whether the cops knew that I was attempting to buy the cell phone, as opposed to just an old used iPhone. It's been reported that the cops knew about a purported video of Ford smoking crack before any reporters—me or the Star's Robyn Doolittle and Kevin Donovan—had seen it. It's also not clear exactly how the cops on the surveillance team learned, as they were watching Siad get into the car I was sitting in, that our meeting was about a phone and not a gun. Before our meeting, the tipster who brought me to meet Siad called him from his cell phone. Siad briefly came to the car, but left to go charge the phone's battery. During his absence, the tipster called him from his cell phone again. It seems likely that the cops were listening in on those calls, and heard Siad and the tipster discussing a phone. (It's illegal for Canadian newspapers to publish information about police wiretaps.) In other news from the Star, the crack house where Rob Ford smoked crack, where his childhood friend lives with his mother, and where he was photographed with three suspected gang members, two of whom were later shot in a gangland style hit, was under police surveillance earlier this year because it was regarded by the Toronto Police Department as "drug house." It's unclear whether they saw Ford there.