Years ago, a friend of mine did his MA on Somalia before it all broke apart. There's actually a large population component that is not part of the clans (and is hated by the clans), so we have to be careful about how we conceive the situation.
Marc

I was aware of that; what I do not have a good fix on is what happened to that "group" after the collapse. Were they a Somali equivalent of the "Wa-Benzi" in other post-colonial African states? Did they survive, leave, or were they washed under the surge of clan warfare?

I am quite happy to say my own time on the ground in Somalia was limited to 2 weeks in 1984. That said, I still left with a dented skull. My associations with other African groups over the years certainly affected my views toward the region. Geography tends to confirm those views: there are no major routes into Somalia other than across country. No one wants to go there and the Somalis like it that way. I realize that is a less than PC viewpoint but it is a very real regional view.

Efforts to buffer and contain are underway; my cautions are that direct or semi-indirect involvement in these conflicts works against containment (or whatever we call it).

Best

Tom