Originally posted by Suldaaanka: My friend, we all know Bosaso Port is Puntland's main breadwinner, the rest account not that much. And if we are not kidding ourselves, we are well aware of its limited capacity in terms of generating income. So, unless you are telling us here that Puntland raises other revenues from some form of underground sources like Human trafficking for instance or nuclear waste deals etc, there is no way Bosaso Port alone will be able to fetch anything even half of the figures you provided. Save us the BLSHT sxb. you forgot to add piracy to that list, seen the astronomical figures asked for every vessel & crew?

^^Most somalis know that they all share many commonalities that are undeniable across all somali territories irrespective of political and regional divide. However, the real misinformation is the popularized myth of absolute cultural Homogeneity that was propagated during the days of somali nationlism and euphoria. You don't need to do extensive anthropological research to realize that there exist some real culural differences amongst somalis across regions and states. This question of Homogeneity seems to me can be said to be true or false depending on relative comparison. I realize it was just a vain political statement, nonetheless it raises questions that extend beyond the political realm

Originally posted by Red sea: Also, did you know that Ambassador Hotel is owned by Burcawi too? Yep, Burcawis are every where these days. Salamu Calaykum. Yes you "budh" wielding hooligans have taken over our cities . I think its time we set up shop in Burco and reverse the trend, Your lil tulo could use some of that Xargeisawii ingenuity

GROUP C Argentina Ivory Coast Serbia & Montenegro Holland Damn it, why they have to put Ivory Coast in the toughest group, This has to be the group of death

Hot air: Summit heads to a close with no sign of progress

Northerner your right, they've been injury prone and are a getting a little old too but hey its the world cup anything can happen. Originally posted by Brown McPharax: I hate Brazzil,i hope they chocke on an Adidas shoe while doing the rhumba...I hope ,i hope lol don't hate man, no one has the right to hate on brazil they are the all-time greatest footbaling nation and whether you like it or not, I don't see that changing anytime soon. Better get use to Ronaldinio's big ol buck tooth smile

This woman works hard to shed light on the on goings back home and does great things. However, I think she's simply allowing her frustration and discontent with the current administration get the best of her. Many Somalilanders put their faith in international recognition as a remedy against all their ills. But that's a pipedream, says Ms Omar: "I think it's a complete fantasy and also a weapon the government is using to stifle debate. Everybody is told that you can't talk about this because you will embarrass Somaliland and we won't get recognised. I think Somalilanders must first recognise their responsibility as human beings, recognise their responsibility to uphold the laws that they have already voted and then we can worry about recognition." ^Helping the people and bringing to us the struggles of the average Somalilander back home is great, but getting all political and trying to fight back against the government by making a mockery of something she feels is important to them like recognition is not the way to go about it. What help is that to the avg man? Many Somalilanders put their faith in international recognition as a remedy against all their ills. But that's a pipedream ^^Is this really true? the avg. farax puts his "faith" in "recognition" or whether or not it will rain so his camels can graze? I admire her efforts to bring about transparency and accountability but she's taking it a bit too far. The Riyaale administration doesn't embody Somalilanders and there national aspirations, the two are not mutually exclusive.

Originally posted by Grammaticus: Are the editors of the news sites that gullible? You mean all those "Phd"s after their name is useless? I always thought having a Phd was a sign of good intellect, but Somalis have convinced me otherwise. Time for a change of career choice for me. ^^^ My first year undergrad, was a time of plenty of political activity internationaly the Americans were threatening to invade Iraq, so this PH.d poli sci woman came into our course as a guess speaker and claimed that invading Iraq had nothing to do with OIL, but more with democracy and Saddam Hussein. So I chuckled to myself and ever since that day I've come to realize that a moron by any other name (Dr.)is still a moron.

Northerner England is going DOWN I tell you, if there is one team that is always overated its ENGLAND. Ok maybe not completely overate this year they got a good squad nonetheless the english tend to overstate their relevance specially those damn english dudes who do the play by play or commentary. Anytime england is playing they go on and on about how great they are. Remember the last Euro when they were up 1-0 in the 88th minute?...they were feeling very cocky until the Zidane free kick weren't they? As always ALLEZ LES BLEUS, and also my African brothers from Ivory Coast I'm looking to them to do big things I tell you.

Originally posted by uchi: They concluded the new cons were behind the September 11th attacks. [/QB] did they?...I vaguely remember this doc, I think they were trying to really emphasize the paranoia that exist with regards to 'terrorism'. If they "concluded the new cons were behind the September 11th attacks" than this is one of those "entertainment" oriented documentaries full of comspiracy theories that seek dramatic effect more than realism. I thought the Zionist where behind the September 11th attack ? (Or thats how the previous conspiracy was told) What is ironic in all of this is how human beings americans and muslims alike are both gripped by paranoia and have trouble coming to terms with reality. Is it so far fetched to believe that muslims were behind the Sept. 11th attacks? Off course not, but some of us are willing to hear ANYTHING and I mean anything but that. The Marsians did it....no it was a jewish plot from another planet...no better yet Americans blew up their own WTC. As for the americans, well there fears are all to well documented, their is probably some federal agent reading all this and as a consequence the 'threat of terrorism ' level when up a couple of coulours up to RED right this moment.

What's amusing about people who take extreme pride in their tribal affiliation is that they all claim to be Hashemites. When they tell you their lineage it goes something like my name is Farax Saclisee of hebel, hebel and hebel etc.....*enter major tribe* BEN HASHIME! How they jump from their tribal founder to the phrophet (pbuh)is one of lifes great mysteries Who knows maybe they know something I don't, if any of you ever figure it out let me know.

Any of you ever heard of Philippe Rushton? I hadn't heard of him either until my first year @ Uni, never did I think people like him actually got academic credentials, he is one odd man who spent a greater part of his academic career doing research and drawing up hypothesis on racial differences. According to him there are two extremes when it comes to race differences that is Mongoloids on one extreme (Asians) and Negroids on the other (Blacks). The black people when it comes to IQ are the dumbest and the Asians the smartest.He's made all kinds of claims based on research some crazy ones include a negative correlation between penis size and IQ, yeah you must think thats a joke. It really isn't this man teaches at my school and receives millions of dollars for research from a private group called the pioneer fund. Who knows the people behind that group, I'm thinking there at least has to be a few white supremacist, but than again they wouldn't really like the fact that he claims asians to be more intelligent than Whites.What I wonder is where do somalis fall in all this? we might think we are an intelligent race but I say we are closer to the Negroid spectrum Anway check it out here's the link. The book is called Race, Evolution And Behavior: A Life History Perspective http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Philippe_Rushton

Originally posted by Northerner: Lui There are part of Somalia that are safe. Somaliland in the north west ^^Blasphemous, we should send you back to reform school to further indoctrinate you, seems you have wandered astray. On a serious note what has happened to you saxiib? Do you know there are foreigners, academics, professional and avg people, whom regularly go out of there way in casual conversation to highlight the distinction between Somaliland as an independent entity (or a de-facto sovereign entity) and yet here you are a son of Mandeeq propagating popular belief. You'd be suprised the interest some people have when you state "I am from Somaliland", and how they subsequently tell other people and those people tell others etc...It might sound like political activism to you and some people nowadays seem to think they're above all this "pety" politiking but I think thats a real perceptive problem. Point is a sentence or two informing people about Somaliland will not eat up significant amount of time in your day, and I think as Somalilanders it is vital we do so. Alot of us young folk who grew up in the west, seem to be very careless about our country. I'll tell you a short lil story. Few weeks ago I was introduced to a polish girl who majors in political science and she asked me what my background was to which I replied I was Somali. She than went on to inquire whether I was from Somaliland or Somalia which kinda caught me off guard, I was a lil puzzled as to how this east european immigrant even knew the distinction between the two, but I went to explain to her that I was a Somalilander and asked how she knew about it. She said she learned of it in a course and preceded to ask me more specific questions about Somaliland and this whole time I'm siting there still half-amazed this girl knows all of this. two days later she introduces me to another friend of hers, and he too asks what my background was, and I answered once again I'm somali to which he replied "Oh your from Somalia" before I could even respond the girl intervene and told the guy "No he's from Somaliland", obviously the guy had a dumb founded look on his face at hearing Somaliland but nonetheless that girl was willing to explain to him the difference and that is what suprised me. When I think about how many young somalilanders are ignorant about the political aspirations of their nation-state and I contrast that with this girl, it is odd to say the least. I guess we {as Somalilanders} lack what some business people call "The ability to think BIG" Imagine for one, that young people from 16 to 21 would have mandatory classes teaching them about their homeland be it culture, anthropology, politics etc...they would develop a keen interest and attachment to their motherland and the interests of their homeland. Basicly indoctrination similar to that of China and the communist party but much more liberal and very less authoritarian after all we don't want to turn into another Barre facist state. Heck Northerner I think you and I could both use some of them classes, perhaps they might teach us how to write proper somali . Another idea would be mandatory military service for males 18-25 they must serve at least 2 yrs before their 25th birthday something along the lines of what France had and Israel,Eritrea and South Korea have today. Anyway I've gone way off topic but I guess you get my point. I think Somaliland is at a juncture in its history where some of it's people (In particular those living abroad) with very small gestures, can make a significant difference in the future of the state.

Originally posted by Castro: ^ Black markets can be combatted with law enforcement and removing the demand for them. how? and won't there always be an incentive to cheat in a market where quotas exist? It's an interesting topic though Castro I don't know if you've taken a course in International Political Economy (or GPE), but I'm sure they offer something along those lines @ UBC. If not you can read up on Susan Strange and Robert Cox, I think Cox would be geared more to your views.

Think Castro is looking at it through North American eyes, where police brutality is all too common and the homicide rate is alot higher. Gotta keep in mind though, the entire U.K. has close to the same amount of homicides as the city of Toronto (about 5 million people), which means the Homicide rate per capita is around 6-7 times lower in the U.K. In other words, english society is not used to hearing about gun violence in their midst, but what makes it worst is somalis were the killers and this police woman wasn't carrying any weapons. Things were bad enough after the london bombings, you had some in this forum making apologetic comments geared at a western audience as if MI-6 was monitoring every single word. I wonder what "cleverness" will be posted as a result of this incident.

Originally posted by Baashi: This is a good one Xiin. This does not surprise me a bit. It's how democracy works. Neocons are within their rights to advocate for their values and believes. Blame it on voter ignorance and the rise and power of interest groups. Odayga, are you sure you were not suprised? Sure Neo-cons have the right to advocate however disproportionate their control of the media and corporate sponsorship might be. Nonetheless, bbbbbeople like Baashi also have the choice to vote for these neo-cons as he had done in 2000

Originally posted by LayZieGirl: 4-0 and still going strong, lets kill them raptors this week. If we go 2-0 against raptors by week's end, we should be in a good spot next week. ^For the sake of your lil streak I hope you don't run into them bad boys...you KNOW who I'm talkin bout

I hear she's a Harvard grad in economics too, be interesting to see what kind of difference she could make.

Originally posted by liibaan: LOL I didn't forget about the Leafs,Pucca. It's just that Toronto always plays Ottawa in the playoffs and Ottawa always wins.Actually I don't think Toronto has ever won a playoff series against Ottawa.... [/QB] Liban, you got it twisted, its the other way around. Toronto always dominates Ottawa in the playoff series, and its Ottawa who has never beaten Toronto in a series. For some reasons they can beat the leafs during the regular season but during the playoffs, its become sort of a mental hurdle for Ottawa, in their minds as soon as they see the White and Blue jerseys in a playoff series they've already lost . I have feeling though if they meet in the playoffs this year, it might finaly be the year Ottawa breaks tha curse in the battle of Ontario. Anybody seen that goal by spezza against the canadians? kid has mad skills.

Originally posted by Dr Stinky Goddfrey: I reserve my opinion about the prof. Sometimes he makes sense to advocate for Somaliland's liberation out of the misery. It is not fun to maintain order under meager budget. They could use the benefits that come with being a sovereign state. IMF and World Bank would come in to indebt them whilst roads and schools would be built. Addis would offer some incentive as a route for trade, however miniscule a revenue generated. and Somali (miserable humans) would get another Djibouti. What is the big deal, I ask? ^ I would agree if our state fell pray to these notions of hyperglobalization, than such an outcome as you described wouldn't be far fetched unless that is, we follow a similar path to that of Malaysia. As in very little institutional (i.e.IMF) interference in the political economy of the state no matter how bleak certain economic periods might seem. In short, taking their money isn't so bad, it's their limitative policies that come with the money that often hurt.

Originally posted by Alpha-Geeljire: (a member of the SSDF, role model of the SNM ), so I don't get your dislike of the outcomes of Mbagathi, and of him. ^

Originally posted by Wordette: Secouer que votre maman vous a donné, vous l'hippopotame affamé. Il certainement secoue ce que sa maman lui a donné lol

Originally posted by Tolstoy: Dear Mr. Lander and Mr. Ngonge , For his endless cynical view about all things Somaliland,...but still I still think on this argument, I believe, he is correct to a fault, particular the issue of Israel, her legitimacy under the international law, and how the law is essentially a construct that is largely based on precedence, and most importantly, how diplomacy seemed to take a larger place, when international laws are getting formulated at the UN's security council. Tolstoy . ^^^The obvious was not the source of my antagonism towards saxiibkay Ngonge, rather the not so obvious and further reaching facts.

Originally posted by NGONGE: I believe I’ve already done that. Saaxib, if every time you read something someone writes you come in with your preconceived ideas of what that someone is saying, you will never be able to understand a word that person is writing. You came here with some predetermined ideas of your own about my take on things (this bad habit is very rampant in SOL). where did you mention Israel was in violation of international law? Did I not attempt to explain the way international law works? Did I not (rather weakly and humbly for I am not a lawyer) try and explain how LAW works? What more could you possibly want? An opinion? I thought I already asked you if that’s what you wanted to know in my first post! Still, I agree with you that the views were simplistic. They were, after all, in reply to the simplistic statement that Israel is an illegal state, like with like, dear Rumpole. However, they remain correct. As for regurgitating what the BBC and CNN say, well, they are news sources, inaadeer. They don’t make the news up (like our Somali news sources), they deal with facts. The spin only comes in the way the facts are presented. Are you following me or am I going too fast for you? pls slow down Btw the "ace" you speak of that yasser arafat had in declaring independence I think your off on that point. Fact of the matter is Bush jr. is the first U.S. President to even publicly state a "two state solution" and therefore the first president to acknowledge that the palestinians have a right to their own state. U.S. policy prior to that was to never publicly acknowledge the right to a "Palestinian State" and as a consequence if any resolution came in front of the U.N. where Palestine declared independence whitout consulting and receiving the green light from Israel or the United States, it surely would have been brought down by the U.S It's as if the Camp David and the Oslo Agreement did not take place! War, this case did not start with 9/11, saaxib. Go and read up on the subject . It's very irritating when one puts in the effort when taking part in a discussion only to find out that those on the other side are merely pulling his leg. I've done some reading, I stand by my statements. I suggest you go back and carefully read what I said about Bush jr., if you EVER find evidence to the contrary I shall bow to your infinite knowledge on this matter. Now, here, paranoia rears its ugly head again. You do me a huge disservice when you consider my mention of Somaliland as a dig (or jab as you put it). Here, again, you come with baggage from previous discussions and personal assumptions. lol...Sure I am making assumptions on your part, but I like to think they're informed ones based on what you write on this forum anyway. Nonetheless I don't remember having such specific discussion with you regarding Somaliland Lander, there are many ways of explaining things to people. With children, in order to keep their interest in the subject you’re speaking about, you’ll mention oranges, apples, stars or toys. Have you never had to count apples in order to learn maths? sorry, I'm mathematicaly challenged With football lovers, one makes a football metaphor or two. With you, whom I know is an ardent Somalilander that follows the politics of the place and is aware of all the issues to do with recognition; I use Somaliland to illustrate my points. There are no hidden agendas or childish digs. As for singing the praises of Mandeeq or not concerning myself of the place, well, erm: I’m going to complain to adeero Silaanyo about you and demand that you’re banned from dhulkayaga. Adigo kolay waxad tahay an Udub nincompoop anyway, mese Ucid baad aheed? None of the above, I plan on making coup and establishing myself as supreme leader, wanna be my secretary/enfocer? your job description would be to dhirbax occasionally a few renegade parlimentarians that act up. This also takes me back to the following comment of yours: I’ve tried this with many Nomads before you but it never seemed to work. However, I’m a sensitive soul and would not be able to sleep at night if I didn’t at least try to share, spread and sprinkle some of my wisdom to my fellow brothers and sisters. You see, my dear Lander . All those that frequent discussion forums are salespeople of one sort or another. We’re all selling opinions and arguments. In order for me to convince you of my argument, I’ll have to have the best sales pitch possible. Let us assume this discussion is about houses , your house and mine. In your argument so far, you’re trying to sell me your house ,because, your neighbour has a good and pretty house or some such nonsense! There is no mention of YOUR house and its qualities. I’ve given you my argument already (which is the house). I then went further in trying to sell you the house by showing you how great its French windows are (see the mention of precedents). I then took you to the back of the house and showed you what a big garden it has (diplomacy playing a great part in shaping international law. It is a big garden, saaxib). I hoped that by this time you would be wavering and I tried to incorporate something that is dear to you into my sales pitch, your house (Somaliland). I believe that I beautifully linked it to my argument (sales pitch). I then went on to show you how houses in America are bought and sold (Supreme Court and the fact that a majority of Catholics might mean a risk that abortion laws will be reversed). This last one was to hint at relevant issues when talking about law and how it changes (it was supposed to be the one that clinches the deal). Alas, I couldn’t close the deal. It was a brilliant sales pitch. I gave a marvellous presentation and I was attentive to my customers’ needs. Why then is nobody buying it? Eur-bloody-eka! As ever, I’m trying to sell meat to a vegetarian! And I bet the rest of the vegans are shaking their heads with confusion as they read this too ..... [/QB] Brilliant indeed, no more is to be said on that front, except I'm not particularly fond of real estate knock offs!Yourhouse is pretty and shines from the outside but a closer would reveal leaky pipes and most importantly a shaky foundation . The house is unstable and needs a balanced and solid foundation in order to be even considered for sale.

Originally posted by NGONGE: Lander , Sounds like you’re after a history lesson here, saaxib. What you wrote there, with all due respect, though interesting and educational to all the other readers, is nothing but a red herring . Red Herring eh...Mayee wa BLACK herring , must be one of those posh words I think I heard prince charles use that before. Something along the lines of going off topic ain't it? Yet in this last response you've managed discuss Iraq, The U.S. supreme court, precedents in LAW 101, Somaliland, Catholics and Israel/Palestine etc..Ngonge if there was so many hours in the day perhaps I would respond to you in a more elaborate manner, but let me get to the point since I have no such time: The superpowers (and most of the West) recognised Israel as a legal entity the minute the state of Israel was declared in 1948. So, at least from that angle, Israel is a legal state. The PLO (the body that represents Palestinians) recognised Israel as a legal and sovereign state when signing the Oslo agreement in 1993 (or was it 94?). Egypt full recognised Israel in the Camp David agreement of the early 80s. Jordan recognised Israel in 1994 (I think). Many of the remaining Arab (and Muslim) countries are willing to recognise the state of Israel as soon as the issue of occupied lands is resolved (the occupied lands are only those that were taken after the 67 war. Anything before that is widely accepted now to be part of Israel proper). Syria has a territorial dispute with Israel and would jump at the chance of resolving it (favourably of course). Lebanon has bad history with Israel and is too weak (for now) to go against the wishes of the Hezb-u-allah movement in the South. A movement that vows to carry on bombing Israel until the last bit of occupied Lebanese lands is given back (Israel claims that disputed land is Syrian and not Lebanese and insists that it will only negotiate with Syria there). So, as you can see, Israel (at least in political terms and in the view of international law) is a legal state. ^^^^^^these views were simplistic and made generalizing statements specially regarding International law and its application in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I am no lawyer or student of law, but even my modest knowledge is enough to refute your views. So, as long as we are both being pretentious (since you claim that I am after "a history lesson") let me be equally as bold and claim that your statements are similar to those found on CNN or BBC, they lack appreciation for the complexities of these issues and sound like regurgitated statements. Surely I didn't expect you to write every single implication in one short post, however you could've explained the grey areas that exist in "international law" and for example how or why it makes Israel a legal entity and an illegal occupier at the same time and whether these laws are equitable or not in your opinion. Btw the "ace" you speak of that yasser arafat had in declaring independence I think your off on that point. Fact of the matter is Bush jr. is the first U.S. President to even publicly state a "two state solution" and therefore the first president to acknowledge that the palestinians have a right to their own state. U.S. policy prior to that was to never publicly acknowledge the right to a "Palestinian State" and as a consequence if any resolution came in front of the U.N. where Palestine declared independence whitout consulting and receiving the green light from Israel or the United States, it surely would have been brought down by the U.S. ALSO, your references (or I would refer to them as "jabs") on Somaliland lack any "snap". When you speak of "precedents" there is so much to be said of that matter that I'll leave it alone for now, since it seems to me that even your example of Somaliland independence setting a "precedent" is another simplistic pop term that is often floated around to explain the international communities lack of recognition. My advice to you on that front is that if your not singing the praises of mandeeq, move along homey you need not concern yourself with that matter all together.