In addition, I asked the likes of north why he believes this garment to be voluntarily when more women complain of it being forced down their throat? I asked him to defend his position when it comes to being an obligatory piece of clothing for women? And ofcourse, you can read his response on that other thread. I think you need glasses dear. You have failed to address the FACTS presented against your argument (on both threads) and you have failed to bring forth any evidence in favour of your 'they are being forced to wear it'. On top of that you have simply disregarded articles by niqaab wearing sisters who say 'we chose to wear it'. You're typing for the sake of it.

They were talking before Aweys decided to go to war. What will change here?

WHAT???????????? Benzema to Real????

Recession be damned!! The new Porsche Panamera

^what? LoL

Originally posted by NGONGE: I'm fine, Norf. You don't think it'll make a good story? Too much Lord of the Rings and Chronicals of Narnia for you I think.

^Lily said its a beautiful day dee. What do I know?

^Leave early and enjoy the weather.

^Or maybe Abu Ali has internet now

DFM is a shambles. Main companies listed are all property developers. How much are Emaar shares now? 3 dirhams? If you want to buy shares buy them in Drake and Scull and Arabtec.

^Are you alright mate?

WOW!

Marx, opinion polls say you're a goner ala Mr Brown

I agree. 6 months is far too long.

Has anyone seen this? I know I'm a bit late but the American health care system is shocking!! Never thought the NHS would be in my good books but it is now. http://www.michaelmo ore.com/sicko/index. html

^Really? Is it not free down there? Full medical gives you good piece of mind. I was at the American Hospital last week after spraining my ankle. Glad I didn't have to pay the bill

Dabshid, A few people who have visited have gone for Hijama and from what I hear it does wonders. Bal aan taraygareeyo.

Originally posted by nuune: quote: Commander Abu Mansoor Al-Amriki :rolleyes:

Shall I go skiing? :cool:

One of the best TV programmes. http://english.aljaz eera.net/programmes/ witness/2009/07/2009 7174258466398.html

Powerful picture Uighurs blame 'ethnic hatred' By Dinah Gardner in Beijing The riots that rocked the city of Urumqi in China's northwestern Xinjiang region are the area's worst for more than a decade. In the 1990s, Uighur insurgent groups staged several deadly bomb attacks across the region; in 2008, attacks on police and government targets in Xinjiang ended with more than two dozen deaths. What makes these riots different, however, is the high number of causalities. Exile groups say violence erupted after police moved in on Sunday to break up a peaceful demonstration protesting against the killing of two Uighur migrant workers in southern China last month. Many Uighurs - the Turkic-speaking Muslim ethnic minority of the region - and overseas scholars say the recent violence is rooted in deep-seated and long-standing resentment between the Uighur people and the Han Chinese majority, who account for 92 per cent of the population. Andrew James Nathan, a political science professor at Columbia University in the US, says deteriorating relations between the Uighur and the Han are to blame for the latest riots. "I don't know what triggered this specific event, but the underlying tension that broke out in this as well as previous events reflects the alienation of the Uighur residents from the kind of rule imposed by Beijing, which is insufficiently respectful of their culture, religion, identity, and interests," he says. Ethnic tensions persist The government, though, is clear about who is to blame – outside forces, in particular Rebiya Kadeer, the leader of the US-based World Uighur Congress (WUC). "The unrest was a pre-emptive, organised, [and a] violent crime. It was instigated and directed from abroad, and carried out by outlaws in the country," a government spokesperson said. Kadeer, a former political prisoner in China who now runs the WUC as a Uighur rights organisation, rejects the accusations. "I did not organise any protests or call on the people to demonstrate," she says. A young Uighur man, who has been living in Beijing for the past five years, agreed to an interview on the condition that he remain anonymous, saying he feared repercussions from the authorities. He says Kadeer and the WUC could not have been behind the violence. "Ever since I was born until now there has been this problem between Uighur and Han," he says. "Han people don't treat us or our culture with any respect, and the key thing is that there are more and more Han coming to live in Xinjiang. And that means us Uighur people are losing our culture and we have less freedoms." Relations are so bad, he says, that Han taxi drivers will not even pick him up on the streets of Urumqi. Uighur children, he says, are barred from learning their own language in schools - from middle school onward studies are solely in Chinese. "They don't allow us to teach our children about Islam in schools. They are not allowed to study religion until they are at least 18." "They have taken away our language and our culture. Han people treat us like dirt." Outside forces Tensions had been reaching boiling point in the past week or so after the deaths of the two Uighur migrant workers. They were killed in a fight in a toy factory in Guangdong province following a rumour that six Uighur men had raped two Han Chinese women. While Chinese media is acknowledging the link between the Urumqi riots and the tragic killings in Guangdong, it is insisting that outside forces used the incident "in the name of revenge" to "sow the seeds of racial and religious hatred in Xinjiang". Al Jazeera approached several Chinese scholars for comment on the riots in Xinjiang but they declined to be interviewed, saying they do not have permission to discuss the issue with journalists. The killings were definitely the spark for this latest violence, says Dru Gladney, a professor of anthropology and Xinjiang specialist at Pomona College in California. "I think it is connected [with the Guangdong killings] at least that's what I've been told by Uighurs I have spoken to," Gladney says, adding that this time because the violence took place in Urumqi it is likely the protest is rooted in anger at Han treatment rather than any religious-based fight for independence. "I think it was significant that it took place in Urumqi because Uighurs there only make up about 10 per cent of the population," he explains by phone. "Most protests have historically been outside Urumqi, in rural areas in the south or in Yili in the north … There are more worker solidarity issues [in Urumqi] - a lot of the Uighur intellectuals and more secular nationalist Uighurs are based in urban areas like Urumqi whereas more religious activists are in the countryside and places like Kashgar." Blaming insurgent groups Beijing says the insurgent groups are fighting for independence and may be connected to al-Qaeda, but for the average Uighur, independence seems an unattainable dream. The young Uighur man in Beijing says his people are powerless and it is useless pursuing notions of independence. "China has caught and suppressed our culture and religion. They have destroyed our history and our ancient buildings in Kashgar. And now it's all gone." Meanwhile, in Urumqi, the city is under lock-down, according to western media. Curfews have been imposed and mobile phone and Internet links cut, much as authorities crushed anti-government riots in Tibet last year. Despite the crackdown, the chances are, say scholars, that this is not the end of it. "Protests in Xinjiang have been increasing slowly for many years and I think the prospect is that they will continue to occur, both this year and in future years," says Nathan. Anniversary celebrations The government is particularly on edge this year because of celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1. While officially, the government insists this problem is caused by exile separatists and local "outlaws", Gladney is hopeful that the scale of the violence will convince Beijing that the solution lies less in an authoritarian approach and more in trying to heal the rifts between the ethnic groups. "I think some of us are hoping that it may cause them to rethink their strike hard tactics that they've used up until now, but certainly not until things settle down," he says. "Clearly with this level of [violence] it should cause them to really rethink that." How do the local people see an eventual solution to the ethnic strife? The Uighur man strokes his beard and laughs nervously. "I don't know how to solve this problem," he says. "I wish I was in Xinjiang now but I'm not there. I feel helpless." Source: Al Jazeera

Xiin, you should have taken JB's advice saxib. Debating with Me is useless. He has put in a good effort but it wasn't what you requested was it? From his assertions it is obvious he is neutral but doesn't want to admit he was wrong in his public support for AS. He has only confirmed those who oppose the TFG will support AS because to them 'they are the only alternative'. No critical thinking takes place. TFG, ya Me, is a legal fiction recognized by the world. It does not have the organs of a state. No entity in Somalia does. But it is a political arrangement that could work if given the chance. What it tried to do was to transition the county from a war ravaged to a relative political stability. The plan was to absorb armed Islamic factions in the south in to this entity so a national dialogue (where other political entities in the North of the county can engage with tfg) can commence. It did not happen, NOT because tfg felt big and refused talk to its opponents, rather it failed because alshabaab felt they could indeed defeat the tfg and have that part of country all for itself. That is how this conflict started. It’s between those who want to be so pure that they would not even compromise with their fellow countrymen, let alone with the neighboring countries, and those who can read the painful reality on the ground, and wants to end this conflict. TFG IS also a known commodity. It’s NOT anew phenomenon. Those who support it do so because they firmly believe that for Somalia to come back we have to start from somewhere. It is that somewhere. It’s far from perfect; its basic political construct is clannish; both chambers are filled with men with questionable characters; it does not enjoy the support of all Somalis. But given where Somalia is today, with the exodus of its intellectuals, the desperation that reigns supreme in its most important regions, the vulnerability of its women and children, the choice is clear: start somewhere and gradually improve it as normalcy comes back. And this tfg, mind you, particularly calls for reconciliation. It’s not a threat to our national interests. The lack of sovereignty preceded it. The weakness you see is the result of two decades of civil war. In fact if Somalis do not come together sooner, they will get even weaker, not stronger. The presence of foreign troops in Xamar is justified on security grounds. Had alshabaab accepted peace overtures Sharif presented to them, it would have not been necessary for these troops to continue their presence. The reason they are here is known, if alshabaab’s way is to be had, more troops acceptable or not will come. The reasons are known as well. For those who have any sense of nationalism and Islaanimo would see this alshabaab bravado is taking Somalia to the wrong direction. But for a born anarchist like you, who confesses that he does not favor alshabaab yet supports the continuation of current violence because he does not like the composition of the current tfg and the selection criteria of its members, it does not really matter which direction this group takes Somalia. You just want Sharif and the tfg defeated. You don’t care what happens next. Living in London, I might add, you can indeed avoid not caring what happens next. That is understandable from that perspective. But it’s morally deplorable. Simply put, I cannot see anyway out of this conflict other than a political settlement. I will always give my support to those who share that view. Those who out of sheer ********* make every effort to settle this conflict by overpowering others are in my opinion wrong. They will, one way or another, lose. I put alshabaab in the latter category. Needless to say Sharif’s tfg falls in the first category, and hence my support. Well said. In order to run one needs to first walk and get his balance. Me will accept nothing less than running from someone who has just been involved in a multi car pile-up and lay in a coma for 20 years without fully rehabilitating. There is no 'reasoning' involved. Its my way or the high way. It is quite unfortunate that many who hold Somalia's key to the future think along the same lines.

^Are you suggesting he is one now that the Ethios have gone?

Xiin, you have brought a new angle to the AS discussion on the other threads. I'll keep it up my sleeve for now.

^you didn't get his point.