For nearly sixteen year, the Somali people have been living in a country that has not changed since American troops were there.  Extreme violence couple with warlordsim and humanitarian suffering has put Somalia further down the road towards improving basic human and economic developments. 

The current situation which brings Ethiopian troops in direct involvement in trying to bring back heavily Islamic controlled areas has been an ongoing battle.  Fighting seems to be everywhere with the Somalia government being backed through international assistance.  Secretary Condoleezza Rice said that the U.S.  “will continue to work in the context of the Somalia Contact Group to mobilize the support of the international community in support of the Somali people.”  Well, what has the U.S. been doing for the last two decades?  This conflict did not end when American troops left. 

It would seem to me that a little bit more action and a little less of political statements needs to come forward.  The new U.N. Secretary General is expect to visit Africa in the upcoming weeks and hopefully a framework of peace and development can come out of that visit through the U.N. member states.