Originally posted by Che -Guevara: I don't see how the divisions within this group serves anybody. It just complicates things farther, but I guess this is expected in Somali politics-old coalitions give way to new ones, same players with just diffirent shirts. Peace is impossible when groups change their political view at whip just to farther their own interests. I rather deal Roobow and co and the Ethios. Atleast, they both have one thing in mind and can keep their officers in line. And honestly, I have said this before what could the TFG and Sharif deliver anyway. Violence is unabated as the real powers (Al-Shabaab and Tigrays) ain't interested in negoitating. True say, still I wonder what Sharif was thinking this whole time. He fully knew he couldn't implement any agreement that did not have the backing of those fighting on the ground and to an extent the rest of the ARS leadership. So what was there to benefit from going at it alone? Perhaps prolonging the misery of those whom are already suffer from the occupation and maybe give false hope to a minority of overt and covert TFG supporters that their 'government' was finally going to be legitimized in the eyes of Somalis. The quickest way out of this mess I still believe is for the US and Ethio's to directly engage with the resistance and its leadership. When that Ethio ambassador crashed the peace talks and Sheikh Sharif and the rest were upset, I think they should have seen it as an opportunity to engage a real power broker in the Ethio Government, one who has the ear of the hyper power in the United States. For the time being I don't see any resolution coming to this conflict without the explicit engagement of the United States and to some extent its agent power in the horn, the government of Ethiopia. Now anybody who has self-deluded beliefs of this being a 'somali conflict' than by all means carry on as you were and do not mind this side note.

Somebody should seriously limit the amount of useless topics you start, every time I check this forum you seem to have more topics than the combinations of ALL the other members on SOL. For the heck of it I decided to count how many topics currently active that have been started by you. Over over 50% are posted by you (13/24), do you find it normal? that all the other folks combined have less than 50% of the topics? I seriously hope your getting paid for this.

^ Stoic I didn't take it that way bro, I was surprised at the reaction you described when it was originally posted...Than again, maybe it wouldn't be THAT surprising...

STOIC I'm not sure what there is (or was) to be dissected, it was my first time coming across the story so I thought I would share. I'm not sure what the reaction was on the original post, but hopefully it served as a reminder for those of us who live in the west, just how fortunate we are to be leading such comfortable lives. Sounds cliché perhaps, but Walahi I was having lunch as I read the story and I couldn't help but wonder how Ahmed was eating a piece of bread for breakfast and a piece of bread for diner, yet managed to work all day washing cars with so little food. Here I was having a container full of meat sitting at my comfortable office desk, doing easy work and yet I often think about how things could be 'better'. The story puts all of our day to day issues in perspective that's all.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/08/africa_somali_refugee_car_washer/html/1.stm

JPMorgan Net Beats Analysts' Estimates; Shares Rise http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aZRbBv7bbKPs&refer=home El Che, I suppose this is favorable news for your employee stock purchase plan. JP seems to be holding up ok so far in the wasteland that is US financials, we'll see in the coming quarter though, some analysts are scrambling to revise their previous estimates but it seems a little early considering the broader market woes.

Originally posted by Abtigiis & Tusbax: The main point is that the idea of secession is driven by the elites of a single clan. That clan tries to advance its hegemony and aspirations with a fasle claim that the 'somaliland dream' is persued by all inhabitants of what was known as 'British Somaliland'. Now, we all know that people from Awdal, Significant parts of Sanag and Sool, not to mention the silent majority of the clan whose name is abused see themselves as being part of the proud people of Somalia. How do you know this? care to substantiate such a claim? The question is straight forward, we are not politicians here so no need to bop and weave. The silent 'majority' of the 'clan' is being held hostage is it? Awdal is being held back against its will is it? How do you substantiate these ludicrous claims ? 4 people standing on a corner in Addis is adequate proof ? This is the second time I notice you posting ridiculous claims vis-a-vis Somaliland and I promise that if you manage to illuminate the above statement, I will never call you out on any other statement. Better yet if you duck an honest response this time as you did last, than I will not waste my time writing a response. Noticing how you fervently respond to lies propagated by the boot shiners of occupation, I expected a little more substance. If for any reason you should feel the need to jump over this post, than by all means carry on this baseless tit for tat I'm sure the likes of Duke would relish it.

Originally posted by xiinfaniin: ^^That’s a distinct possibility yaa Castro ! Amharic would be the language of choice anyway, I must submit, if Somalia breaks up and disintegrates into little insignificant tribal enclaves… ^ Ceebay tacaal All 'tribal' propaganda aside, are you saying you would rather learn Amharic and be part of the Ethiopian Empire than join your brothers in Somaliland ? P.S. Yes I did catch that before you had a chance to edit

Originally posted by Peace Action: Lander, You are contradicting yourself. Yesterday you welcome the Somali Djibouti peace deal that calls for the departure of Ethiopian troops and now you want the Ethiopians to stay and the bloodshed to continue. Let me guess, the return of the Somali state is the nightmare end of your 18 year dream of seccession. ^ When have I ever said I agreed with any Djibouti agreement?

Originally posted by xiinfaniin: ^^No, you got that one wrong yaa dreamy Lander. I am NOT in 'denial of all things Somaliland'. I just dont see it as a country, i see it as part of Somalia. As i said before a country called Somaliland only exists in seccessionist heads...and that is some thing i cant do much about.. And no I dont hail from the region; I have not seen it really. But that is neither here nor there, after all I am having a debate with a man who eqaully is removed from the region if not more... You don’t hold a monopoly in believing in a ‘United Somalia’, or for believing that Somaliland should not gain international recognition. I respect many people who hold on to their hopes of seeing a united Somali Republic. When people have genuine intentions, hope is a beautiful thing and I am not one to tell people what they should or should hold on to. However, when people try to mischaracterize Somaliland at every turn and try to stir up tribal animosities amongst its population, I question their intentions. The thread started with discontent coming from sister who hails from Awdal and in recent news the political hot topic of the day was a drill being moved from a neighborhood in Hargeisa to Borama. Not to minimize the effects of this incident, or the incompetence shown by the Administration in addressing issues for all its municipalities, but looking at the bigger picture, it is still quite an achievement to me that people are bickering over a drill where as 17 yrs ago they were on opposing sides of a war that claimed thousands of peoples lives.

Originally posted by xiinfaniin: Oodweyne : with all honest and seriousness my engagements in these boards are NOT meant to reason with fanatics, and zealous qabiilists! I found both characteristics in you adeer! Somaliland as a country only exists in the heads of fanatics. Others see a relatively peaceful albeit struggling region in a failed state called Somalia. I knew others could be seduced to believe such rubbish, but good NGONGE sort of surprised me really. That’s why I spared some time to reason with him. But you are a known commodity in these boards… Rich, coming from someone who's illogical denial of all things Somaliland stems from tribal insecurity. Perhaps I don't frequent the forum often enough, but it would seem you hail from the region after all! so it all makes complete sense now. Even your unreasoned support for the unfeasible 'peace' process that sought to keep the people of Somalia at the mercy of the occupation and who’s only tangible benefit would be to legitimize an otherwise illegitimate ‘government’ is clarified.

Originally posted by xiinfaniin: NG, I am not sure if you confuse the reality of SL entity as a functioning region with that of a state or country! The fact of the matter is that Somaliland is NOT a country! Depicting it as a country does not make it so! The difference (forget about feelings and emotions) between SL & PL in the eyes of the observers of the region borders zero! Human Trafficking, Piracy, extortion, racketeering, printing ridiculous amounts of fake currency that virtually made the shilling useless etc...So you mean to tell me 'regional observers' are not aware of these facts? perhaps making baseless statements has become the norm on SOL. How often have you seen reports of the above crimes in Somaliland? Personally, I can honestly say that I have NEVER seen a single report of Piracy or an organized Human trafficking business flourishing in any sea-town in Somaliland. Meanwhile, there are countless reports documented by somali and western journalists alike about these extremely lucrative crimes committed in Puntland. The typical reply you hear from people of said region is that the 'administration' doesn't condone these actions or do not have enough power to stop these actions. That is besides the point really, since we are highlighting the 'difference' that regional observers should be aware of between the two areas. The average person in Puntland probably doesn't see a penny of that money and it would be unfair if not inaccurate to characterize the people of Puntland as profiting from such activities. However, it would not be far fetched to assume (admittedly with no factual basis what so ever) that it is indeed Puntland that has a 'political elite' as you would like to call it. This group would be singularly profiting from the misery that is unfolding on the shores of Puntland and in the streets of Southern Somalia. I can assume that much and it would make a hell of a lot more sense than the fabrications that are often repeated in these forums.

It is true that winds blow in response to natural atmospheric imbalances….. That is if the wind pressure of a locality is high and that of a nearly is low, then, there is a natural need to achieve balance or else a catastrophe would happen. It is also true that when it rains it may roar…. That is if and when neighboring cloud masses move violently in the skies, because of the frictions involved, some parts develop high positive charges as they are striped off their negative charges which accumulate at elsewhere in the cloud masses hence other nearby negative charges fly in to fill, again for nature to achieve balance … hence the thunder and fire! And it is true that trees shed their leaves in the dry or cold season. This is because during those times, the existence of the whole tree is at stake and since most activities: perspiration, food manufacturing etc. of the plant, occur at the leaf, the tree must stop work to preserve only what it has… hence it goes to hibernation by shedding its leaves! And it is true that during long days’ hard work, our body cells function too hard to catch up with demand hence we get tired. But when we sleep, all our body parts from the basic cell to the whole systems hibernate and reach what scientists call basal metabolism where all cells do almost nothing. And by this, we regain energy and become active the next morning. Of course all of these and many others are natural phenomena. However, strange as it may seem, man’s activities can have a negative impact on some or all natural phenomena. For instance, it is true that my once productive farm, like million farms in poor Somaliland is sterile today. And that prompts me to ask why? In fact, today, its low productivity, albeit small, has a positive contribution to present world food crises that cause the exorbitant worldwide food prices. No wonder, economists theorize that “whenever supply diminishes, demand soars!” So, worried about the infertility of my farm, the other day, I was sitting alone trying to find explanation as to why my farm was productive in the olden days producing 100 sacks of 50kg each of sorghum in one go and why it is sterile today producing less than 5 sacks a year no matter how hard I may work? But after long thoughts over this nightmare, I concluded one thing: that I must go to the basics of science to understand and find a solution. And so today, I am writing this short article hoping it sheds some light on that. So, first and foremost, let me go to the basic scientific fact that all living things need water, food etc. But it is also true that plants are said to be autotrophic… that is by photosynthesis, plants can make their own food when animals cannot. …in photosynthesis, plant leaves, utilizing their green pigment, absorb sunlight, blend it with carbon-dioxide from the air; add to it water, absorbed by their roots through osmosis, and then out of them manufacture simple sugars to grow and thrive. That is why plants are independent. However, like all living things, including of course my farm’s sorghum, need nutrients (a nutrient is that part of food which gives nourishment)…which means plants need elemental carbon, nitrogen compounds, phosphorus and a host of other nutrients albeit in small amounts. And it is from those nutrients and of course with water that they build their food and hence ours (cereals, fruits, nuts etc.). So, now with this as our background, let me take you to my lately unproductive farm. For over fifty years or so, I grew only sorghum. Unfortunately, little did I know that growing the same product (crop) in one plot every year depletes the soil of certain nutrients/minerals because every plant prefers to utilize certain kinds of nutrients. And if so, more than fifty years which is the case of my farm, those specific nutrients/minerals, a prerequisite for growth of healthy sorghum, may have already dried up. This is one reason why my poor farm is sterile today. But to avoid catastrophes like those mentioned, farmers in the developed world use fertilizers (man made nutrient rich chemicals) to replenish that lost valuable soil nutrient/minerals. So, my failure to do likewise is another sorrowful saga that makes my farm less productive. And to those deprivations, add the decrease of rain fall resulting from the now real world climatic changes that wreak havoc across the globe, causing floods, famine, droughts and desertification all directly or indirectly caused by our senseless destruction of the environment….. sorry, little do we realize that doing that exposes the top soil …the nutrient rich part of the earth which when exposed can be easily washed away by floods or blown away by winds…. hence the increase of infertility of farms like mine and another sorrowful saga partly perpetrated by man. In fact our greed motivated wanton destruction of the environment is making our whole earth sterile unable to provide sustenance. Hence our once fertile and marshy lands are today barren lands unable to feed us. And worst yet, to everything said, add my lack of understanding of the practice of crop rotation … crop rotation is the art of growing one kind of crop in one plot one year but switching it to some thing else next year …a fact never practiced in my farm too. But had that been done, my farm would probably have supplied me with more healthy crops. And finally, to that add today’s poor rainfall that rarely storms or thunders…..lightening and thunder are good for plants because they avail atmospheric nitrogen for plant uses. How? Nitrogen, in its natural form, is an inactive (inert) gas. In chemistry, nitrogen is said to be self-satisfied and hence reacts with nothing in its normal state… that is why it is used as a fire retardant when oxygen helps burning… And it is one of the major components of the air… makes 78% of the air. But while it cannot be directly utilized by plants, its compounds are indispensable basic nutrients for plants. So, rain lightening activates this inert gas by forcing it to react with oxygen and in the process changes it to other forms of nitrogen compounds. It is those other forms of nitrogen that help plants grow because in the presence of water, carbon etc., nitrogen compounds are utilized…hence healthier plants with higher productivity. In other words, when lightening strikes inert nitrogen gas, it converts it to other forms of nitrogen which can be readily utilized as food by plants. So, when it rains it rarely roars and how can that atmospheric nitrogen be converted to the useful forms of nitrogen? In addition, amazingly, at the roots of certain plants, live certain microorganisms that have the capability to utilize inert (chemically inactive) nitrogen gas in the air by changing it to other easily plant absorbable forms. However, in my farm, which never practices crop rotation, which is a prerequisite for actions like that to happen, it is possible that such microorganisms are rare and hence there is no chance for them to do so. Again this increases the infertility of my farm. However, the constant removal of free nitrogen from the air as mentioned is replenished by the action of certain other microorganisms that decompose dead plant/animal tissues which are of course rich in nitrogen compounds and so free nitrogen always returns to the atmosphere… that is the nitrogen cycle. It is one of the wonders of perpetuation of creation. So, my dear friends, with all those basic facts as our background, let me ask: 1. How can our farms become productive and hence feed us especially when the soil that is supposed to give sustenance to it is already sterile? 2. How can a land, depleted of all nutrients support any plant growth… including farms? 3. And how can any living thing grow up well without food let alone reproduce/produce? By profession, I am neither an agronomist nor an agricultural engineer, but I think that it is a high time that our nations’ agricultural scientists, agricultural engineers, soil conservationist, etc. preach Somaliland agricultural community the basic facts mentioned in this article. Had they done so, I am sure Somaliland farming community would have provided enough bread for the whole nation! So, my dear friends, my infertile farm is typical of all Somaliland farms. But it must be understood that for any nation to achieve success and development, its agriculture sector must thrive and prosper because a nation that cannot feed its people is bound to fail. Consequently, it is the responsibility of the ministry of agriculture, utilizing its professionals to hold seminars, symposiums and conferences so that the farming community learns all the modern techniques of crop production! And it is necessary that the government supports all agricultural development initiatives though that does not mean that the government is indifferent to the present food crises facing poor Somaliland and that its resources are limited. However, it must be remembered that “where there is a will there is a way!” And now let us ask: does Somaliland prefer to live on world community food hand outs… a world community that is sick and tired of pathologic beggars? Or should it support its farming community so that it can feed the whole nation by growing enough food? My preference would be an emphatic yes to the second question because we have a virgin land, we have the mind and we have the muscle! So, shouldn’t we quit the begging for bread syndrome? I believe it is by far better to work hard and make it or else perish with honor! And finally, my fellow Somalilanders I encourage you to give yourselves a boost by reading the story: “that the African mind will be the hottest commodity in the future market. And the reason is because it is raw and has yet to be fully exploited for beneficial use! In fact it has all its creativity in store and is ready to be unleashed any day! That of the Japanese is exhausted and that of the Europeans, like my poor farm, is already sterile because with its tremendous technological inventions and innovations since the Renaissance, it has been overused?” That is why it gives immigration to your intellectuals! But please remember one thing: that if we do not prove otherwise and keep begging for bread handouts, we will certainly remain to be the laughing stock of the whole world! Noah Arre EMAIL: noah.arre@gmail.com> http://www.awdalnews.com/wmview.php?ArtID=10346

http://allafrica.com/stories/200807100662.html

Originally posted by Abtigiis & Tusbax: This is not to exonerate the 'myopic' secessionsits up north who wouldn't blink their eyes to sell the land of the Somali's to the highest bidder . But at least, they have a system in place. how so ?

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=26821 Somali government destroys Mogadishu homes Hundreds of families displaced after their homes were demolished by Somalia’s transitional government. NAIROBI - Hundreds of families in Mogadishu have been displaced after the government demolished their homes, residents told IRIN on 9 July. "They [Mogadishu officials] have destroyed our homes by force and we have no place to go," Fadumo Omar said. She said the affected area, Loyado in Abdiaziz district of north Mogadishu, was home to 450 families. Omar, who is more than 60 years old, said she had lived in Loyado for over 40 years. "I had 13 children and the children have had their children here. Now all of a sudden they destroyed my home and displaced me." She said officials from the Benadir region [Mogadishu and environs] began destroying the houses in June and the demolition was ongoing. "They were here this morning, but we are not going away," Omar said. "Mogadishu officials came with a bulldozer and destroyed more homes today; they had technicals [battlewagons] and we had nothing. They told us if we did not get out of the way we would get hurt.” Omar said the order came from the mayor's office. "We have nowhere to go. I don’t know what we will do," she added. Mariam Ahmed, another resident, said: "Every morning we gather and sit on the rubble of our homes." A local journalist, who requested anonymity, said there were reports that some rich businessmen were interested in the land at Loyado. He said Mogadishu officials had said the area had become a hideout for criminals and that is why they were demolishing buildings. "They [Mogadishu officials] are using security as an excuse, but it is really about money and these residents are poor, with no major clan affiliation to protect them, so they are an easy target." Ahmed said the residents had written an appeal to senior Transitional Federal Government (TFG) officials but had received no response. Muse Nur Amin, the minister of interior and national security, told IRIN he had given instructions for the demolitions to stop. "If the Mogadishu municipality has restarted them I will investigate." He said the rights of "all these people will be protected", adding that those who were legally moved for whatever reason would be provided with alternative sites. IRIN's attempts to obtain a comment from the mayor's office were unsuccessful.

Let them be man, the villas have to be built somehow.

Originally posted by Gar-haye: just to enhance your point their i think they should also somehow destablize or cut the supply lines from barbara port. you know that is where some of the amos comes in. That's a lie and if you're a self-respecting man you'll substantiate what you just stated.

Oodweyne, I agree, the leadership failed our people and as you mentioned it was fitting that Egal had a second chance to right a previous failure. Was the leadership right or justified in making the decision it made? I suppose that is debatable, the failure of that decision however is not so debatable as history would indicate.

D/P

Originally posted by Al Burcaawi: Duke, we refuse to answer! We wish instead to throw accusations back at you. Sound familiar old chap? ^

Originally posted by Ceyrow jr.: Loool..MMA, Actually it's ok without the jacket assuming its' hot there. Lander, Do u know him? Not at all saxiib, I'm sure he's quite the character though.

Secessionist, which secessionist? are we talking about Puntland here? I didn't know they were on the verge of declaring independence, kinda hard to do anyway with Ethiopian military barracks on your territory right?

Originally posted by Mansa Munsa: a reality that is hard to digest but needs to be reckoned with is; over 90% of the infrastructure of this region, be schools, hospitals, roads and so on, is what the previous Somali government had put together. ^^ So you mention this in the same paragraph where you describe your experience in Hargeisa which you dubbed as '7 lonely nights'. Did you actually leave your hotel room and survey the infrastructure? better yet, a much simpler question; If the said 'government' had built the said 'infrastructure', than that same government leveled Hargeisa in '88 and subsequently must have come back from dead to reconstruct what they had built right? How do dead men rebuild what they destroyed? Did the Ghost of Siad Barre magically repair all that was destroyed in the last 17 yrs? This maybe going into the absurd if not outright blasphemous I realize, but I figure this would be the only way to level. Perhaps Oodweyne is nice enough to give you a pass on some of this bull, however I'm not quite as accomodating. When I saw the title I expected a unique insight into every day life back home, you know the type we DON'T get in news documentaries or politically inclined stuff on the internet. Your visit to Mr. Omar was as close as you got to giving us some insight into life back home, but even than you didn't really describe just what you saw near the shabelle aside from stating that land in Hiiraan is fertile (I really could've googled that one). So I have to ask, when you decided to go back home, were you on a political crusade? if not, than why is there so little sensible experience in your anecdote and so much biased political rubbish. Did you go back home to reinforce your narrow-minded and previously ill conceived views?

lool..waryee, kan ma shalay bu Amsterdam ka so dagay