Armed Forces

I saw a newly minted Nigerian soldier on the bus yesterday.  My heart swelled with pride, a la "support our troops" USA. 

I don't like needless violence, even state-sanctioned violence; and for sure Boko Haram can be understood not just in martial terms, but in terms of poverty, religion, and psychosis. 
At my blog BokoHalal.blogspot.com , I propound that Boko Haram is itself Haram, unlawful and in fact illogical. 

All of the above approaches are important for tackling Boko Haram, dealing with the root cause of the problem: economic answers (food, education, health...), religious guidance, psychological understanding too. 

Nevertheless, some Rambo-style action is necessary as well.  Go get 'em, soldier.  Never fear. 

Independence-era novels from Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana

I just finished reading A Man of the People, a male book by Chinua Achebe.  Although written in the early 1960s, it's rather complete, in that practically the same words of satire are popular today.  

Before that I read Weep Not, Child (by Ngugi, who completely deserves his one-name status);
 and (browsed) The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born, by their Ghanian contemporary, Ayi Kwei Armah. 

I highly recommend all three.  
Fuck this fucking slow internet @ 10kbps. 

I am very happy about this

The famous Bibliotheca/library in Alexandria Egypt noticed my poem! 
From their Painting With Words poetry contest blog, see الرسم بالكلمات: Winners' Names:

1. First Prize: Alexander Spathis for his poem "Your Fugitive Hair"
2. Second Prize: Tosin Otitoju for her poem "Alexandria"
3. Third Prize: Yasser Kashef for his poem "Living Memories I Relish"
4. Fourth Prize: Rania Yehia El-Badry for her poem "A Glimpse of Heaven"
5. Fifth Prize: Sarah Abdelhakim Amer Elsayed for her poem "Loneliness"

Wish I could have been there to read it.
Alexandria is a lovely city by the way.  You have to see it for yourself.

Thanks to:
The publishers of writersafrika.blogspot.com for announcing this contest.  Your blog is of enormous benefit to me (and many writers.)
My dear Adam, aka hezni, on whose story the poem Alexandria is based.  I'll try and call him (out of the blue after 4 years.)  Maybe nothing will happen.   

Not at all?

I look at webpages for various PhD programs and I look and I say "I really can't."  I can't do three years or "4+n" years of voluntary prison time.  I can't spend two years on ONE problem while life passes by.  Not just won't, physically can not.

I can imagine circumstances under which I might - e.g. a part time thing from work, I'm old and powerful with nothing better to do, the whole thing takes two years or less, or maybe the environment has good distractions... 

Most recently (today), I considered PhD programs in Statistics, which it occurred to me is the "easy" option: learn some very easy math, then find some majorly large data-sets and say some insightful things about that system - at least this is reasonably well-defined.  But to look at the program websites, they've gone and made it about discovering theories about statistics itself.  That's alright until you remember that you'll have supervisors looking over your shoulder - they'll be the judges, not you. 

I wonder how my students survive...the endless butt-in-seat hours for instance.  Or their know-it-all lecturer yapping on about math structures that may or may not lead to progress.  I don't know how the many with poor grades survive the hit on their self-esteem.  I wish I could rearrange the world so that they'd be doing what they love to do.  I include a few things in class to improve the situation: open-ended play with software, connections with culture and development, discussion always about why we are going to learn this, etc





I "survived", actually loved studying engineering in school, because I was very curious about Engineering Systems and Applied Math.  I study a lot even now - for no reason at all other than the desire to know.  But many engineering students want to be engineers (designing, repairing, team-working, fabricating, inventing) or are undecided.  Few want to be analysts when they grow up, and that's what all this theoretical training is most suited to.  This misalignment is a waste of time for many people.

Ekiti no dey carry last

One time before, Nigeria gofment wan do Seven-Point Agenda.  E tay small, e come be like say the agenda too much for dem, na im some people come yarn say make oga Presido try finish even one point.  No be there we tanda till today?  Sha, make we leave that matter.

For Ekiti State, na Eight-Point agenda the government carry come since October 2010 wen dem enter.   The governor Kayode Fayemi try; sotay Leadership Newspaper give am title say im be Best Governor wey dey for Nigeria.

The governor im wife

Na on top all dis happy-happy one progress club wey dem dey call Ekitiparapo talk say make all dem people come chop rice for Lagos City Hall.  Na dis Saturday wey just pass; me sef carry fine dress go checkirrout.  Hmm.  You don see where Senior Advocate SAN full ground like sand-sand?  I say even the gofnor sef get PhD wey im don carry write book about one kind social studies matter.  Ekiti people too sabi book abeg.

The part wey sweet pass inside the whole Ekiti Day: after item-seven pounded yam, dem call some ogbonge people make dem come collect award.  As dem call Papa Victor Olaiya, na im him carry trumpet come dey sing dey entertain everybody.  Abi you no know im song?  Na im sing Omo Pupa o.  Im sing for 1960 independence time sef.  Na betta man im be. 

Small time dem call Oga Jimoh Aliu make im come collect im own.  As im dey jollificate for on top stage, wallahi we just see Fadeyi Oloro - that number one badoski guy for Yoruba film - the guy just carry im blackface and plenty jazz come bad belle am.  But im come relax remember say na the theater guru be im creator sef, so im must bow.  Anyway, na so all of us sha see free show watch sha.

If you see the MC of the day sef, nothing do am.  Im just carry one kin cap put for head wey get wing like bird wey wan fly, im dey blow thick Ekiti grammatical go.  And you know say na many bigz girls and bigz boyses wey no hear common "wa/go" talk less of dialect.  No be some people see state motto wey be "Ilẹ Iyi, Ilẹ Eyẹ" (Correct Land of Honour) come carry ajebutter eye read say "Ile Yii, Ile Ẹyẹ" (dis one na bird house.)  Chai!  Na pesin wey no sabi road go village be dat.