Cige, the country needs liberation old chap! keep your game up!! Even Red has adopted a new nick

Cige, isagoo oodihiisii wata!

LX, good stuff; keep them coming.

LX, good stuff; keep them coming.

“Name one reasonable and practical thing that should be done in order to bring them to the peace process” Baashi Baashi, it is good of you to ask. Questions are easily asked, answers however are oftentimes difficult to formulate but as far as one can see, looking at it by and large, in the fairness of time , you would find that, not to put too fine a point on it, the matter was partially dealt in letter. All that been said; let me elucidate further, shed some light to the matter, make perhaps more clear for us all to comprehend fully. The aim of a political dialogue, when it presents itself in the public forum of any society, is to articulate and to make explicit those shared notions and principles of thought to be already latent in the common sense, or as it is often the case of the Somali politics, if common sense is hesitant and uncertain and it does not know what to think, to propose to it certain conceptions and principles congenial to its most essential convictions and cultural underpinnings. Now, the real task is to discover and formulate the deep-seated issues of contention which one hopes one is versed in. To begin the process of reaching out, Ahemedou’s office must recognise the importance of both absent groups; the group in Asmara (led by Sheikh H. D. Aweys) and Al-Shabaab within this conflict. He must then open the door for dialogue and must work tirelessly towards winning their trust. Dear chap, in shuttle diplomacy and realpolitik, where there is a will there must be a way. How may you ask can this achieved? One hopes, by undertaking the following: 1. Dropping the terror label 2. Speed-up replacement of Ethiopian troops with multinational peacekeeping forces, led by United Nations troops that are culturally acceptable to Somalis - preferably from Arab, Islamic and African states. 3. Must show his commitment towards setting up a war crimes tribunal/investigating panel One can never be certain of course in our political theatre as the average Somali politician has the political maturity of a Italian, the flexibility of a German, the modesty of the French together with the imagination of the Belgium, the generosity of Dutch and the intelligence of the Irish. No wonder we are in this predicament. Sophist PS: Good to be back, have been in the political wildness far too long

Generale, I hope all is well. I have tried to make contact but to no avail. Send me your number old boy- pm. Xiin, I am very aware of that old chap. What we need is a concerted effort from those fortunes had favoured to get together and indeed work towards ending this hideous cycle. As I said, this is the beginning of what is an exigent journey towards lasting peace. But we cannot genuinely ignore facts on the ground if what we want is the rebirth of our nation. To ignore the problem is to prolong it. All parties involved have to sit with individuals that they may detest; they have to look at what is at stake here. Coming back the point you have raised about thinkers. Yesterday, there was a chap whose name I am sure many are familiar with. This chap introduced himself as a Secretary of some sort within the opposition group—those who have signed the agreement. He then continued to ask a question that sought the clarification of THAT CLAUSE; … Sufficient number. His question was who determines this number? I thought about this guy’s predicament. He is a member of the ARS executive committee and he is seeking a clarification of that obscure clause; one he either had signed himself of his colleagues. If I was Ahmedou, my response would have been “ old chap, you are an official of the ARS; your job is to convince your public about the validity of this agreement”. Here is a man who is member of the exec committee of the ARS seeking clarification of that clause!! What is wrong with this picture chaps? Ahmedou spoke about in-experience of the ARS negotiating group! I don’t think he was condescending, he seemed genuinely concerned. Dearth of leadership!! Aloow noo gargaar.

Good to see you there old chap!

Castro, no need to apologise; we have alot to do. Noblesse Oblige brother!

Xiin, thanks brother. I met Ahmedou yesterday at Chatham house. He is a seasoned diplomat and it seems he is increasingly becoming well versed in the art of Somali politics and how to direct 'hostile' attacks away from his office. He delivered very emotional sermon about how great Somalia was and how it's ill-educated leaders messed the country. He utilised very emotive language and most of the audience were subdued. As result the questions were moderately cosmetic and the responses he had given were equally simplistic. I was fortunate enough to ask a question. Mine I had hoped will let the Genie out of the bottle. I simply told him that it was easy to make peace with friends, but the challenge is making peace with your enemies as such it seems what has happened was simply the former rather than the later. I followed with, “What will become of the ‘real’ opposition, those whom large numbers of Somalis believe to be the real insurgency? Is your office going to reach out those influential actors within the Somalia or will it implement what many think to be Bush’s policy and that is to isolate the military wing of the opposition? His response was of course, the door is open and we want peace in Somalia. Nice enough chap!.

Ngone, it has been handed to him personally old chap! Other than just being the cynic you are, any quams with the points raised?

What your thoughts Forum!

Open Letter to Ahmed Ould Abdallah, the UN Special Envoy to Somalia His Excellency: Ahmed Ould Abdallah, the UN Special Envoy to Somalia. Your excellence, I would like to congratulate your office for its restless effort to achieve peace settlement in Somalia and are encouraged by the attempts made so far. I also commend your office for upholding the territorial integrity of our country. Ever-since the Somali conflict started, with exception of a brief period with Ambassador Sahnoun in the early 1990s, Somalia was lacking an honest peace broker, therefore, like most of Somalis inside and outside the country, I appreciate your endeavour and welcome the agreement between the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG) and The Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS) on June 9th 2008, in Djibouti as a step forward to the onerous road to peace. While I acknowledge these efforts, I also would like to express my concern for the emergence of the division within the opposition groups and lack of inclusiveness in the process amongst resistance, to whom without its inclusion the lasting peace in Somalia will remain to be elusive. Therefore, everything must be done to reach out to all those opposition groups, particularly the military arm of the ARS whose influence cannot be ignored. Your excellence, since December 2006, the invasion of Ethiopia and its subsequent occupation are the main causes for the pandemonium and violence in Somalia. In order to build the trust of Somali people in the peace, your office must facilitate the immediate withdrawal of the Ethiopian troops firstly from the cities and towns followed by its withdrawal from the rest of the country. This move will be the road to building the trust of Somali people in the peace process. The people of Somalia have been brutalised and raped off their humanity by the occupying forces. War crimes have been committed by the occupation forces, in Somalia, a fact backed up by human rights organisations such as: Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and others. What is more, thousands of Somalis are incarcerated in prisons inside the country and in Ethiopia, without due process; hence, I urge the UN representative for Somalia to work on their immediate release from these detention centres. We also ask your office to push for the appointment of a special UN commissioner to investigate these alleged war crimes. The history of international intervention post “Operation Restore Hope” UN in Somalia is not very encouraging, however, I welcome the deployment of an international stabilisation force from countries that are “friends of Somalia” with a mandate that will help the re-establishment of inclusive government, that will pave the way for a multi-party political system. I acknowledge Mr. Ahmedou Ould Abdallahis courageous and tireless under these difficult times. I encourage the UN Representative for Somalia to carry-on his efforts of finding lasting solution for Somalia. We remind his Excellency for this to transpire, the peace process must be inclusive. By that we mean, all the influential actors within ARS must be included. Their absence will only continue to exacerbate the situation. Furthermore, it will reinforce the notion that this process was the West’s grand plan to derail the insurgency and divide the opposition groups between “modern v hardliners”. Recommendations A year and half has elapsed since the invasion by Ethiopian forces. The situation in Somalia went from bad to worst. Moreover, it seems things are going back to the dark years of the early1990’s - the worst periods of Somali civil war. The international community, particularly those who have participated directly or indirectly to the present day conflict in Somalia, should share the responsibility for this tragic state of affairs, namely the United States, who had not only given political and economical support to the Ethiopian government but has bombed as recently as March 2008; the southern Somali towns Dobley and Dhuusamareeb, where many innocent women and children lost their lives. Therefore, in order to make the efforts of UN and UN Special Envoy for Somalia more effective and bring lasting peace; I make the following recommendations: 1. To address Somali concerns and to make the peace process more effective and inclusive I urge; a. That UN Representative for Somalia to help lift ‘terror labels’ imposed upon the groups and individuals, who can play a crucial role in the peace making in Somalia. b. To speed-up replacement of Ethiopian troops with multinational peacekeeping forces, led by United Nations troops that are culturally acceptable to Somalis - preferably from Arab, Islamic and African states. c. The United Nations must be seen as an impartial mediator, for it to play a trusted role between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the opposition. d. UN member states must stop counter productive activities such as; dumping waste in Somali territory, illegal fishing off Somalia shores, and failed simplistic U.S.A. policies towards “war on terror”. 2. When Ethiopian troops vacate Somalia; a. The United Nations must set up a war crimes tribunal/investigating panel, to look into allegations of war crimes committed by warring parties in the conflict. b. Cognizant to the fact that people of Somalia have, in no so many ways suffered for the past 18 years, therefore the UN should help civil societies to heal and put an end to the painful psychological sufferings. c. United Nations must urge the International community to provide all the necessary economic and developmental assistance needed in order to re-establish a progressive and prosperous state based upon the principles of good governance. Shirwa Jama

Sicid the true somali deal-maker!

Haneefa, Salamu Alaikum walal. If you go to Aflax.net or any other Somali Dacwah site, you will find the Buluuq read by Sheikh Shariif C/Nuur.

I havent seen Raad yet; but invited to the Launch dinner tonight.

Barakalahu Laka Wabaraka caleyka wajamaca beynakumaa fii kheyr!! PS:The first time I saw Caano Geel wearing a suite! what a sight!!!

Jerome Kerviel (born January 11, 1977) worked in the bank’s Delta One products team in Paris, and was responsible for what appears to be the largest financial fraud of all time. Societe Generale’s Delta One business includes programme trading, ETFs, swaps, index and quantitative trading. According to well-placed sources within the EQD structuring team (it is someone I know personally) this guy was not terribly stable in the head. Apparently he lost the money intentionally out of malevolence rather than greed. The astonishing thing about this is SocGen is one of the most sophisticated Ibs in the world (they are notoriously known for their almost perfect systems). How then such a seemingly junior could have caused such havoc without being noticed (futures contract are easy to spot if there any errors or fraudulent activities as the certificates are normally printed and given to head of operations)? The answer lies with Jerome’s intimate knowledge of middle office and back office operation within Socgen; before his promotion to the floor, Jerome was a middle office guy. Anyhow, this is some royally messed up thing; luc Francoise just lost his job (co-head of Equity Derivatives at Socgen) a good friend of my MD whom we were hoping to make some money from! Oh well!. Sophist PS: Some say he is somewhat an escapegoat though I doubt that.

Caano: Seedi; dhibta jooyi. JB: Thanks,I wasn’t aware of that. Always thought that you found my philosophical ideas convoluted at best!; I am still hopeful Allah will show you the light Be well guys. Sophist

Dear Sirs, Salam to the gallery; those who I share with political believes and others whom I have enjoyed their banter but always differed on Somali politics; namely Mr Oodweyne and Ngone. As you know LA (my pride and glory of a city) has fallen at the hands of mercenaries rented by folks in Hargeisa. This is a shameful perfidy to be remembered till eternity—the MEN of this region, Afhakame, Artan Boss, Hassan Wananood, Afqabaal, Cali Duulane, Cali Dhuux, Ismaaciil Mire to mention but a few; towering figures of Somali history must be fuming with disgust in their graves. Today Ali’s words will suffice. · Gun baan ahay ganbo cad baan xidhnahay, iyo gar naagoode · Gashaantiyaha sidoodoo kalaan, guur u sugayaaye · Aniga iyo hablaha loo galmoodo, waan gudboonahaye · Jeeroon ganboolka iska rido, guudka iga saran · SOL WAA IGA XARAAN I bid you a good day.

Using logic in determine the existence of God does not only show the foolishness the humans but how arrogant we can be. To make logic the prince of all things is just ludicrous—a science that its principles formulated by another human mind; the mind which works in its fashion because of unpredictable neuron signals. Physics deals withe realm of the physical, this is meta-physics chaps. Aloow noo gargaar.

Salaams, Uh, you never fail to raise up to the occasion my dear Sire. The comment was merely made as a result of the insight one has within the working of SL’s political appointments of late, as such I thought a gent of such illustrious standing should have been given -or you should have sought it out, if anything else just out of moral duty and this is not a case ‘asinus asinum fricat’ dear lad. Then again, dreams are just that. Nothing but the product of involuntary reactions of one’s clerbral neurons hard at work as the conscious takes leave momentarily—you dear lad, had been labouring under the false believe that a tiny clan can be a nation because our adopted country (Britain) has once ruled over it? How such a gimmick can be sold to someone who has been at the receiving end of higher education is enigma to us all. Then again the tribal feeling of that part of SOMALIA has always ruled supreme above anything that either physically or metaphysically existed within your kin. Dear lad, I am sure one day, not very long, ( if you gracefully accept it) I will invite to my white washed Vila in Lasa Surad on the beach (35 miles away from Xiis, your ancestral home) and sip sweet tea under that Galool tree whilst the blue flag hoisted above us. We shall rejoice our little tit tatu on SOL!. Eid Mubarak yaa Awoowe. Rgrds, Sophist

Odweyne, how are you dear Sire? I was wholly disappointed with the announcement that the ambassador designate to London was not you; what were they thinking?

How on earth does this 26 yrs have no risk lemit; dont the platform have a VAR limit?

Calyon Trader Fired for $353 Million Loss Says He's No Rogue 2007-10-09 19:26 (New York) By Pierre Paulden, Jacqueline Simmons and Hamish Risk Oct. 10 (Bloomberg) -- The Calyon trader fired last month for alleged unauthorized trading that led to 250 million euros ($353 million) of losses said his bosses knew what he was doing and considered him a ``golden child'' of the New York office. ``There was nothing deceptive or rogue,'' Richard ``Chip'' Bierbaum, 26, said in an interview. ``My positions were reported on a daily basis. It did not blow up. I expect there were some losses but nowhere near the amounts they are discussing. I was the golden child of credit trading in New York.'' Calyon, the investment banking unit of Paris-based Credit Agricole SA, France's second-largest bank, said on Sept. 18 that it had an ``unusually large market position'' that was ``above the authorized limit'' and would cause third-quarter profit to fall ``sharply.'' While Calyon didn't identify the people involved, Bierbaum, whose stepfather is a descendent of John Jay, the first chief justice of the U.S., said he was fired and blamed for the trades on indexes linked to derivatives. The losses would be the biggest from unauthorized trading since John Rusnak's currency bets cost Dublin-based Allied Irish Banks Plc $691 million in 2002. Management failures to oversee derivatives traders allowed Nick Leeson to bankrupt Barings Plc and Yasuo Hamanaka to hide $2.6 billion of losses from copper futures at Tokyo-based Sumitomo Corp. while their employers remained ignorant. `Isolated Incident' ``The bank maintains that this is an isolated incident and the work of an individual trader who did not respect our risk procedures and who breached our trading limits,'' Calyon spokeswoman Anne Robert said in an interview last week in Paris. ``The losses were the result of the cost to unwind these unauthorized positions.'' Five of Bierbaum's superiors were also dismissed, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation who declined to be identified because the information wasn't publicly disclosed. Calyon ousted Francois Pages, 50, the chief executive officer of the U.S. unit, and Loic Fery, 33, global head of credit markets, according to the people familiar with the situation. Zain Abdullah, 37, Calyon's head of credit markets and collateralized debt obligations in the U.S.; Jerome Le Jamtel, 40, head of the credit and debt markets division of Calyon Americas, and Thierry Hasse, 45, head of proprietary trading in New York, also left the firm, the people said. Fery, Le Jamtel and Abdullah declined to comment. Hasse and Pages didn't return calls seeking comment. Calyon's Robert said the bank ``has taken the relevant disciplinary measures linked to the non-authorized transactions.'' Credit-Default Swaps Bierbaum said he invested in indexes linked to credit- default swaps that would profit if the Federal Reserve cut interest rates, causing investor perception of credit quality to improve. He declined to provide details of the trades. Credit-default swaps are derivatives, financial instruments derived from stocks, bonds, loans, currencies and commodities, or linked to specific events like changes in the weather or interest rates. Traders use the contracts to speculate on the ability of companies to repay debt. The contracts pay the buyer face value of a bond or loan in exchange for the underlying securities should the company default. On Aug. 17, the Fed lowered the so-called discount interest rate that it charges banks by 0.5 percentage point, to 5.75 percent. The move reduced the cost of credit-default swaps included in the CDX North America Investment Grade Index to 60.51 basis points on Aug. 24 from 78.33 on Aug. 16, showing that investor perception of risk had diminished. Credit Agricole Credit Agricole said at the end of the month that a decline in the value of fixed-income securities sparked by record U.S. subprime mortgage foreclosures was having a ``limited impact'' on its business. The index then switched direction and rose to 67.525 basis points on Sept. 4, the day that Calyon said it discovered the trade, according to prices from CMA Datavision in London. A new version of the index is now at 44.75. Calyon, created when Credit Agricole bought Paris-based Credit Lyonnais in 2003, said the position was mainly built during the ``last days of August, above the authorized limit and without the authority to engage the bank at the level of this trade.'' Credit Agricole's shares have lost 9 percent this year, compared with the 5.2 percent drop for the Bloomberg Europe Banks and Financial Services Index. France's largest bank by assets is Paris-based BNP Paribas SA. `Ludicrous' Bierbaum said he sent reports on his position every day to his supervisors and Calyon's risk management department. He also said the trade had made a profit of about $100 million before he was placed on administrative leave. Bierbaum couldn't explain how that turned into a $353 million loss. Banks typically reverse bets that credit-default swaps will fall by purchasing the contracts. Calyon said on Sept. 18 that the position was back ``within the normal trading activities.'' The statement that the trades were made without permission is ``ludicrous'' and getting fired was a ``complete shock,'' Bierbaum said. He said he hired a lawyer, though he wouldn't name the firm or provide more details. ``You would think that a bank would put limits on the aggregate amount a 26-year-old could have to trade,'' said John Coffee, professor of securities law at Columbia University in New York, who has served on advisory committees to the Nasdaq, New York Stock Exchange and NASD. Derivatives can be harder to monitor than other financial assets, such as stocks or currencies, because they trade privately, said Frank Partnoy, a former debt trader who is now a law professor at the University of San Diego. `Doubled Down' ``Typically, these losses involve a trader who has lost more money than he should and then doubled down,'' Coffee said. ``It's predictable. Like someone going to the race track, losing all day and then betting the rent money in the final race to make back losses.'' Leeson, whose currency derivatives caused Barings to collapse in 1995, said continued losses show that banks don't want to spend the money needed to prevent rogue trades. ``Over the last 10 years there have been several large financial scandals that have lost billions of dollars and yet people don't really have the systems and controls in place,'' he said in an interview in Dublin on Oct. 4. ``You have to ask yourself why.'' Bierbaum confirmed his mother is married to Henry T. Mortimer Jr. Bierbaum's stepfather is also descended from Henry Morgan Tilford, a former president of Standard Oil. Bierbaum grew up in New York and attended St. Bernard's School, a private boy's middle school in Manhattan. `Emotional Issues' During high school, he was sent to the Rocky Mountain Academy in Bonner Creek, Idaho. The academy catered to teenagers with ``behavioral and emotional issues'' before closing in 2005, according to Julia Andrick, the former marketing director at the school. She said the issues ranged from ``disrespecting parents'' to drug and alcohol abuse. ``It was a place to be for a couple of years relative to public school,'' said Bierbaum, declining to elaborate. Bierbaum then attended Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. In 2001 he was arrested in Suffolk County, New York, for driving under the influence, according to records on the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's Web site. The arresting officer found fake identification in Bierbaum's wallet. Bierbaum said he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. ``I was a sophomore in college,'' Bierbaum said. ``I wasn't aware of the consequences.'' LeFrak, Bear Stearns After graduating from Trinity in 2003, Bierbaum spent four months at real estate and investment firm LeFrak Organization in Newport, New Jersey. His main job was to show apartments to potential renters. ``He was a good soldier,'' said Jamie LeFrak, a 33-year-old principal at the firm who is in a relationship with Bierbaum's sister, Caroline. ``Chip is an honest guy who would certainly check with his bosses,'' said LeFrak, grandson of the late real estate billionaire Samuel LeFrak. Bierbaum joined New York-based Bear Stearns Cos. in October 2003, where he processed trades and eventually became a junior trader for one of the firm's hedge funds that collapsed in June because of bad bets on securities linked to subprime mortgages, his resume shows. Russell Sherman, a spokesman for the firm, didn't return a call seeking comment. Bierbaum joined Calyon in March as a trader making bets with the firm's capital. He became a chartered financial analyst in May, according to Kathy Valentine, spokeswoman for the CFA Institute. ``I would like to get back into credit trading,'' said Bierbaum, who has remained in New York since being fired, reading the newspapers and sending out his resume. ``I worry about it,'' he said of the allegations that he was a rogue trader. ``It's my word against theirs.'' --With reporting by Jacqueline Simmons in Paris, Caroline Salas and Jody Shenn in New York, and Louisa Nesbitt in Dublin. Editor: Moody (grs/rbg) To contact the reporters on this story: Pierre Paulden in New York at +1-212-617-5992 or ppaulden@bloomberg.net; Jacqueline Simmons in Paris at (331) 53 65 5055 or jackiem@bloomberg.net; Hamish Risk in London at (44) 207 673 2928 or hrisk@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Emma Moody at +1-212-617-3504 or emoody@bloomberg.net; Adrian Cox at +1-44-20-7673-2334 acox2@bloomberg.net; Gavin Serkin at +44 207 673 2467 or gserkin@bloomberg.

LOL