Al-Shabaab vs. Somaliland

With the recent pressure placed on Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) by terrorist organization Al-Shabaab, interest has been sparked on the effects this may have for the self-declared state of Somaliland and other regional actors. (Somaliland Times "Somalia: Conflict Will Spread Unless International Community Acts - U.S. Policymaker")

Leading up to the elections this summer in Somaliland, Al-Shabaab offered threats to the break-away region to discontinue their failed attempts at international democratic recognition and embrace Al-Shabaab's interpretation of Islamic governance in the whole of Somalia. (Somaliland Press "Al-Shabaab Warns Somaliland Voters")

Despite the ongoing threats, Somaliland successfully held democratic elections and on July 27th the new President of the as-yet-unrecognized country was sworn in amidst a flurry of congratulatory support from various members of the local and international community. (Somaliland Press "Somaliand Election Free And Fair: Observers")


Still, the threat from the rising powers of Al-Shabaab is present despite Somaliland's determination. Speculative writings from various internet sources invoke feelings of unavoidability for a final confrontation between the terrorist group and the people of the northern region. While this is largely personal opinion and slightly negative in outlook, it has basis for argument. It is hard to deny, for example, that Al-Shabaab takes an extremely anti-western-democratic stance while Somaliland continues to struggle for a successful democratic model in the eyes of the west. Meanwhile, the international community's reluctance to recognize Somaliland damages the base upon which the region stands and creates an internal instability that could prove dangerous under the wrong conditions. (Long War Journal "Shabaab Looks to the Somali North" ; Mareeg Online (commentary) "The Ultimate Fight: Somaliland vs. Al-Shabaab")

These might be valuable issues to keep an eye on for the future as the region surrounding Somalia continues to grow in importance as far as international concern for stability and security is concerned. There is no doubt that increasing international interest in the future of Somalia and the TFG under Sheikh Sharif Ahmed is going to have serious effects on Somaliland. Whether these are negative or positive effects remains to be seen.

Surrendering to the Geek Side

or "Why I'm interested in a book about the periodic table"

I know you're thinking that if I'm at all interested in a book about the periodic table then the only reasonable answer to why I am interested must be that I'm a science geek. Possibly, yes. However that is not exactly the whole explanation.

There are several things I used to like about the periodic table and learning the elements in high school.
1) It's actually sort of easy to learn because it's simply memorizing, sure it takes a while, but you get the hang of it after four straight hours of cramming :P
2) It's often colour-coded! This totally fits into my slightly obsessive need to have things organized and colour-coded in my life and therefore must be good. Also you get to colour, which is fun :)
3) Once you understand the groupings of each element you begin to grasp some of the basic relationships required to learn and pass chemistry. It also provides extremely valuable information about each element, without which you'd have to just know when solving chemistry problems. Very helpful information this is indeed.
4) There are unknown and unidentified elements but the only reason we know that there are elements we don't know about is because someone decided the chart looked better with a set of extra blank boxes tacked on the bottom. Obviously this person shared my love of symmetry/asymmetry, or they just miscounted and were too lazy to make a correction. Either way, the mystery of the unknown elements is intriguing.

Which brings me to a book about the elements. The Disappearing Spoon, by Sam Kean (his name is my name too - but that's no reason to read a book, well not in this case anyway) is a collection of weird and wacky and interesting stories that are linked to each element of the periodic table. From how they were named and problems caused by those names to silly and scary superstitions that underlie even scarier truths, the book apparently has it all. The title itself refers to a prank where scientists would create spoons out of Gallium (31GA) and serve them to guests with their tea. Gallium melts under heat and so the spoon would melt into the tea.

@ Amazon.ca

Of course I may put off reading this book until my thesis is well and finished - but it's on The List for sure. For now I just wanted to reminisce about my love for the periodic table and revel in my inner geek for a short spell. On with my day now I suppose...

Wandering, Wondering

I feel I've been wandering through life lately without any sense of direction. It seems strange that this is my impression of my day-to-day seeing as how I know exactly what it is I am meant to do each day and each week - work on my dissertation, go to work, keep informed about the world, spend time with friends. Yet these tasks, which I willingly enter into, seem to feel forced most days. Being in the company of friends is easy enough, I thoroughly enjoy spending time with them, but I suffer from a reluctance to escape the confines of my room and go visit them in the first place. Why? I don't know.
Possibly my room has become a black hole that I struggle to escape from. With the library running on shitty hours and the weather being as unstable as it is I find it hard to motivate myself to leave the confines of these four walls when it is unnecessary. I also get an incredibly awkward feeling around my flatmates when I eat or work in the kitchen. Strange really but I feel more comfortable in my room. Possibly this is symptomatic of my ongoing descent into hermitage, but I digress.
The bird outside my window, which wakes me from my hazy zoned-out existence during the day, fights with a cat all night long. I blame them for my mental exhaustion. Likely my lack of sleep is not entirely their fault. My mind races too much during the night to allow my body a solid rem sleep. However, the cat is supremely obnoxious, so she shall bear the burden of my blame-shifting.
My books lie open on my desk - an article entitled "Somaliland: Africa's best kept secret, A challenge to the international community?" awaits my attention. I want to read it, but I dread the consequences. There is a chance the article will further my thoughts and arguments for my work. However there is an equal chance that it will challenge me further and inspire more time-exhausting research.
Unfortunately, a third option exists where the article proves useless in every way and results in my ongoing state of dissatisfaction with the whole dissertation process. Thus more procrastination.
I love watching dramatic TV programming to procrastinate. It's more than laziness or mindless time-wasting. I thoroughly enjoy interesting plots and characters. I love new and creative ideas. They challenge me on world issues and inspire my own localized imagination.  Unfortunately I love watching TV more than I seem to love working on my dissertation or getting necessary sleep before my 7AM shifts at the City Hotel. I also spend far too much time on facebook and sporcle. Speaking of... wait, I'll finish this post first.
Family's coming in a month, best friend a month after that. Living in Ireland and achieving my goals as best as I can. I have a solid job that doesn't overly vex me. I work with good people and that's truly half the battle. The sun shines most days and the people of Derry are friendly. My herbs on the windowsill are growing nicely. I have a loving group of friends and the support of my peers. So why is it that life seems to be giving me fruit baskets and all I can do is wish I could make lemonade??