₦airaland Forum

Looks amazing--even if they have corruption in their construction industry, at least they can boast of a working city transit system with elevated trains etc. My cousin was there last year and also loved it--she said the tailors are excellent and make great suits for less than 100 pounds.

Great photos, Constantin.

ThiefOfHearts:
T Mobile's Favorite Fives commercial with the two roommates and the "secret lovers" song

Indeed.

I thought this was the year's best Super Bowl commercial, for those who didn't see it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHkoZ7ngAM0

Amaechi's not the only one to come out of the closet recently--UK Nairalanders probably know this guy better than I do, but [url=http://music.guardian.co.uk/rock/story/0,,1984350,00.html]Kele Okereke of Bloc Party[/url] hinted that he's gay recently, as did Rev. Jide Macauley, who has a predominantly gay Nigerian church.

In all likelihood, most of us on Nairaland probably know a gay Naija at home or abroad, whether they're out about it or not. Homosexuality is not new to Nigeria (or Africa, for that matter before someone comes to say something about how it's 'foreign' to 'African culture'). Gay Naijas are all around us in churches, schools, friends etc.

To answer earlier questions--this is Exu

I just saw a hilarious new Apple ad that reminded me of this thread. Click to see it if you've got Quicktime installed:

http://images.apple.com/movies/us/apple/getamac/apple-getamac-security_480x376.mov

TerraCotta,

Do you know how to read? You made a number of untrue statements, one of which is that Edo state is number two after Imo in university admission. That is totally incorrect.

Insults are the refuge of small minds, Docokwy. It should be clear to you that I know how to read and write. If you're going to insult me, at least go for something that makes sense. Question my intelligence or reach for a cheap joke about my family or my ethnicity or something---this kind of "do you know how to read" crap is beneath someone of your age.

On to your claim--I never said Edo state is number two after Imo in university admission. They are number two in the number of candidates seeking admission, which are the figures I was referring to. I'd make a cheap joke about your reading comprehension skills here, but I like to think I'm above petty crap like that .

I'll admit that I didn't note the difference between admission and acceptance statistics--frankly, I wasn't paying that much attention. As I said in my first post, I think the JAMB statistics are pretty clear that the South East leads in producing candidates, if you want to rely on those figures. That's not really in dispute. Someone else (Kobesosimi) pointed out the obvious flaws in relying exclusively on JAMB figures at the beginning of this discussion. I also pointed out that if the UNESCO numbers can be criticized for not "adjusting for population percentage" or whatever, then so can the JAMB statistics. Any of the South-South states with high numbers of JAMB candidates (Akwa Ibom, Edo, and Delta come to mind) might well produce the highest percentage of admitted uni students if you compared such figures. That was my response to 4Play--I'm not surprised that you conveniently forgot to reply to that point.

If you make a painstaking effort to study the available data, then there is no doubt who are the most educated. Moreover, secondary education (which data from UNICEF you are flaunting; and which is flawed because it is not state-of-origin based) as it is currently in Nigeria, can hardly be said to make one educated. University and Polytechnic education therefore are the most basic ways to assess educational attainment in Nigeria at the moment.

According to your JAMB criteria, which does not tell me how many of these students actually graduate from uni, pursue advanced degrees, pursue degrees in which discipline etc. etc. I'm sure you know all this and refuse to be honest about it, which is why I won't be bothering myself with this discussion any more. It makes no difference to me if the South East produces the most admitted students in Nigerian universities according to JAMB--it's actually a cause for celebration, since people from that region feel marginalized and this turn of events might be helpful in curing that.

Donzman--I'm a little embarrassed for you. It seems that your vocabulary's a little shoddy and you're intimidated by "big words". Everyone else in this discussion seemed to understand my post just fine, so get a dictionary and look up whatever words seem to be troubling you. Then add something useful to the discussion and I'll think about responding. Adios until then.

4Play: @Terracotta

Your analysis is incredibly flawed because u don't adjust for population differences

For instance,Kaduna has higher numbers than Ekiti.Does that tell us that people from Kaduna are more educated than people from Ekiti.It simply means that there are far more people in Kaduna than Ekiti

Can't ignore a decent challenge--Rrather than exposing a flaw in the figures I posted, your point demonstrates why the reliance on JAMB statistics proves nothing either. Tell me, did you, docokwy, babyosisi etc. adjust for population differences when they declared that Igbos were the "most educated Nigerians". What statistical analysis was offered to compare the percentage of, for instance, Edo state indigenes (2nd place on the JAMB list), Delta state indigenes (fourth place on the JAMB list), or Akwa Ibom state indigenes (6th place on the JAMB list), to the percentage of Igbos, Yorubas, Hausas etc. registered for JAMB? If the population of those states (which are ethnically homogenous states with the exception of Delta) are smaller than that of the "Igbo", "Yoruba", "Hausa" etc. states yet they are still posting comparable or superior numbers of JAMB takers, an objective observer would note that point while making their claims on who is "most educated." Imo state for instance is ranked 13th in terms of population and is number 1 on the JAMB list, while Edo state is ranked 27th in population and number 2 on the JAMB list (check Wikipedia for the stats). Based on your suggestion of "adjustments for population differences", which state do you think should come out on top? Any statisticians reading this thread with nothing better to do should feel free to supply us with an answer

So my fellow countryman--what is the quantitative difference between your critique of the raw population figures in the UNESCO report--which absolutely suggests that Kaduna has more "educated" people than Ekiti [/b]if we use secondary school enrollment as the yardstick )--and using raw population numbers from the JAMB test? Both figures are based on a head count and [b]not on any adjustments based on population/percentages. I'm afraid you'll have to dump your conclusions from JAMB results as well if you want to "adjust for population differences." If not, you'll have to accept the UNESCO figures as equally valid. And on that basis, Nigerians from Lagos, Ogun, Edo, and Delta states would be considered the "most educated" in the country. Feel free to try again.

What u need is data that tells u what percentage of people from a state are enrolled in school.

If state A has a population of 2 million people and 1 million have gone through schooling,State B has a population of 1.5 million and 900,000.The later is more educated even though it has fewer people who have gone through school

I don't need to do anything--as I said, I avoided what Xcape accurately called an ethnic "pissing contest" because I think this is an insidious argument held by people with ulterior motives. (For instance, one Nairalander posting here's reputation as a bit of an ethnocentric rabble-rouser at Nigeriavillagesquare.com precedes him, since I'm a casual reader there ). Anyway, I think the previous passage has established that this argument is a red herring since the JAMB results suffer from the same critique. Curiously, none of the people boosting those JAMB results as "accurate" have noticed that they weren't "adjusted for population differences."

U have to make adjustments for population differences.Otherwise we can conclude that Nigerians are better educated than Jewish people because there are more Nigerians in school than Jews

Why yes, 4Play--we absolutely could conclude that Nigerians are better educated than Jewish people because there are more Nigerians in school than Jews. That's the basic premise of this thread, isn't it Counting which group of Nigerians "has more people in school" than the other Or is there some other arbitrary criteria that was decided on while I wasn't reading? Of course, you can submit your "adjusted for population differences" argument here, but you'll have to produce actual figures rather than assumptions and guesses.

Go back and get us some proper data

Not so fast, slick--I throw the challenge back to you. You and the other JAMB cheerleaders dismissing the UNESCO report will

a) have to provide an accurate "adjustment for population figures" for all 36 states in the JAMB listing, since the results you are using are just raw head counts like the UNESCO report;
b) then prove that states with a higher number of JAMB registrants also produce a higher number of people admitted to university. I'm sure you're familiar with the adage that quantity is not quality--there are around 806,000 people taking JAMB exams every year, yet there are only 147,000 university places available for them. That means that more than 700,000 JAMB takers aren't going on to higher education. JAMB results boosters should be able to demonstrate that the states with the highest amount of registrants are not the states with the highest amount of students who are not admitted to universities.

As the old cliche goes, "there are lies, damn lies, and statistics." The latter do not always show what we think or what we wish. If you think the UNESCO report is "incredibly flawed" because it lacks "adjustment for population," then I've shown why the JAMB results are "incredibly flawed" for the same reason. Oya--our resident JAMBites have to prove their case with better lies, damn lies, and statistics. I doubt that I'll be back to join you for the rest of the pissing contest, but I hope I've given you some food for thought. Hope all of that wasn't too complicated

Xcape has said all that needs to be said. Na wa for Naijas and our fascination with ethnic navel-gazing.


BabyOsisi--it's telling that you have nothing to say in response to xtycod. Whatever your stance on this issue (I happen to agree with you that JAMB statistics answer the question to some degree, though not decisively since fraud has rendered the results sketchy at best), you should know that there's a contradiction in claiming to be a devout Christian and willfully ignoring the simple-minded ethnocentrism of people like xtycod. It seems like blatant hypocrisy however you look at it--I don't really care much for religious debate, but championing your ethnicity at the expense of denigrating others doesn't exactly jibe with the Bible's recommendations.

I usually avoid juvenile discussions like this but I'd expected a little better from grown folks (I'm assuming here) like you since your comments are generally more matured than the norm.

On the topic--I work in higher ed, so educational statistics always interest me. Research like this recent report presented to the United Nations is telling. It shows secondary school enrollment stats for Nigeria in 2003 by state and then by gender. Lagos leads the pack by far, followed by Oyo, Ogun, Edo, and Delta states (turn to page 21, class ). These states report a relatively even balance between genders in secondary school for South-West and South-South (with the exception of Bayelsa state, I think). The report also suggests that the South East has a lower rate of retention for male schoolchildren because they are often pressured into working in small/family businesses, while girls are encouraged to pursue academics. The North has the reverse problem with girl-child education because of religious pressures (pages 39-42). This discussion has been going on in Nigeria for the last few years. Doesn't invalidate the suggestion from JAMB statistics that the South East states produces the most JAMB candidates, but it also suggests that eventual matriculation/completion of school doesn't necessarily favor the South East (or the North, obviously). My two kobo .

justkunmi:
nigerians are not even in the oscar radar. . not with the quality of our works.

[Typical Nollywood actress]Are you maaaad?[/Typical Nollywood actress]. Is that so? So Nollywood isn't up to Oscar standard yet? You mean to tell me 'Games Men Play' isn't going to score that 'Best Original Screenplay' award anytime soon? You're destroying my long-cherished illusions today.

Ye of little faith, sha. You will see Tade Ogidan repping Naija in full agbada up on that Oscar stage with the likes of Guillermo del Toro soon enough. Geneveive sef go come scoop some nominations from Penelope Cruz and co. You will see Omotola on the 'E' Network gisting about her aso oke gown with Joan Rivers while RMD and Jim Iyke wave to the screaming girls in the crowd from the red carpet. Nollywood will conquer LA. "And we shall found our own armies, our own religion, our own dynasty! And that day is upon you NOW!” (A thousand "movie lover" cool points for anyone who can identify that quote)

Wale--Thanks for your suggestions. London's changed so much--I've heard about the changes in Thamesmead and the owambe parties . Never was anything like that when I was younger.

Anybody else who wants to add up-to-the-minute Naija places of interest in London--stores, neighborhoods, clubs/bars etc.--please do. I'm trying to make sure people like Babyfayce don't have cause for complaint in the future

naijafan:
punchlines ni*ger, not punch verses!

"I'm like f*ck critics/y'all can kiss my whole asshole"

Jay-Z, "99 Problems"

spikyn:
oh well, "Jack, it's Chinatown"

He's being accused of being a little too over the top in 'The Departed' (and I agree), so I'm not surprised he was passed over. I'd say Mark Walhberg deserved a nomination before Jack, which is sad, but true nontheless.

Didn't get around to seeing 'The New World' when it was out, but I've read good things about it. 'Thank You For Smoking' on the other hand seemed like it was trying too hard with the black humour--it put me to sleep on the plane. "Volver" could give Pan's Labyrinth a run for it's money in the foreign language category.

Patiently waits for that day when a "Madam Dearest/Aya Mi Owon" will be eligible. Soon come!

Feeling like some hardcore shit today

One of the most cinematic verses I ever heard:

"I keep it tight for all the nights my momma prayed I'd stop
Said she had dreams that snipers hit me with a fatal shot--
Those nightmares, ma
Those dreams you say got give me chills
But the mills keep me hot--feel me?
Enough to stop the illin' right?
But at the same time these dimes keep me feeling tight
I'm so confused
OK I'm getting weeded now
I know I'm contradicting myself--look, I don't need that now
It's just once in a blue
When there's nothing to do
and the tension's too thick for my sober mind to cut through
I get to zonin'
Me and this chick on an island and we're boning
Free my mind, sometimes I hear myself moaning
Take one more toke and then I leave that weed alone, man
It got me going, "

---Jay-Z, "Feelin' It"



"That coke'll get you a long time
But when I let 'em know the dope is out
It's like America Online
Wise words spoken
and you know they say you deserve it whenever you die with your eyes open
I still hold the title
Cause I'm in the hood like them little motorcycles"

--Jadakiss, "New York"

and for a little something out of left field:

"Come through and the dig the sound
of the fly brown six - o sicko psycho who throws the d*ck around
Bound to go three plat
Came to destroy rap--it's the intricate plot of a b-boy strapped,
Get kidnapped, then release a statement to the press
let the rest know who did that
metal face terrorist--claim responsibility
broken household, name usually said in hostility
"Uhm--MF, you silly"
I'd like to take mens to the end, for two milly
Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo, that's the audio daily double,
Rappers need to fall off just to save me the trouble, yo
Watch your own back
Came in and go out alone, black
Stay in the zone, turn H20 to cognac

, Definition supervillian: a killer who loved children
One who is well-skilled in destruction as well as building"

MF Doom, "Doomsday"

Ahem

Any other suggestions for visitors to London? I'm soliciting opinions for a little thing I'm working on about Naijas in London. Which are the other hot restaurants apart from 805 and Mama Calabar? Outside of Peckham and Camberwell (I think Hackney too), where are Naijas living these days? Any and all contributions welcome.

iice:
[color=#006600]@TOH i think we got similar tastes, am not into flowers too but i'd take the tiger lilies or orchids over the long stemmed roses ughhhh.

The claimers have come--tiger lillies ko, dandy lions ni

Fellas--don't fall for this stuff. Who even knows whether TOH and Iice are real chicks? They could be guys pretending to be women online--you know how Naijas are. Can't be trusted

Don't let them fool you with all this talk of diamonds and dandelions--stick with the roses and zirconias. Go ahead and throw in a teddy bear too.

ikamefa:
Lost without you- Robin thicke

Hmmm,

Santeria - Sublime

Don't know about you guys, but I pretty much live on YouTube these days, and I've got my favorites. Everything from Nigerian dog pageants () to Nollywood trailers () to some weird and wonderful stuff that defies classification (). Post a link to your favorite YouTube videos here--doesn't have to be Naija-related stuff. There's incredibly random stuff that I find hysterical, like this wrestling match between the Ultimate Warrior and Phil Collins. Let's see some of your picks.

ikamefa: ngbo terracotta? LMAO

@ topic diamonds are foreverrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

But cubic zirconias are just one-tenth the price. Nairaland bobos--get at me if you want a sweet deal on some zirconias for your one and only this Valentine's day. She'll never know the difference

You put that synthetic diamond together with a giant teddy bear--I tell you, the sky's the limit on Valentine's night.

ThiefOfHearts:
as you can see Terra has never had a girlfriend. He gets off on Harry Potter.

**Obvious plea for [b]someone [/b]to send TOH a larger-than-life size teddy bear with with red rose stuck underneath its arm**

We can all see through your reverse psychology.

justkunmi:
teddy bears. . hell no

Don't listen to these people. They don't know what they're talking about. Chicks totally dig teddy bears--humungous frigging teddy bears that take three fully-grown men to lift them. That's the way I'd do it, anyway. A gigantic bear with a single red rose tucked underneath its arm. What can I say? I'm a die-hard romantic.

Here's the song. Knock yourselves out.

dblock:
the majority of the buildings look really old and Post Modern Architecture or At Deco is the only form of architecture i recognise

doesn't match up with

No shit. But Art Deco is industrial and stuff so the movement was the begining of post modernism I believe, take the Chrysler Building or thw woolworths centre(Now the Sony building), This Art Deco buildings sparked the begining of post modernism. But my point is this kind of arhitecture is more pleasing to the eyes, well at least my eyes than brick apartments piled up aginst each other, It's almost as depressing as Newyork Midtown

This sounds confusing--Art Deco didn't spark Post-Modernism. You might have a point with Modernism, but it's a different movement from Post-Modernism though they share similar names. By the way, both the Chrysler Building and the Sony Building are in midtown Manhattan. How's it depressing there if that kind of architecture is "more pleasing to the eyes" Naijas and claiming sha!

I'm playing, dblock. Do you, jare.

dblock:
Yeah I don't like the architecture, the majority of the buildings look really old and I don't think that's a good thing, because I believe that the only way is forward. Post Modern Architecture or At Deco is the only form of architecture i recognise

Post-modern architecture and Art Deco are not the same thing. The Art Deco movement died about sixty years ago, so I'm sure most examples of it would look "really old", as a matter of fact. Not sure where you are going with this.

Carry on, sha

Nope--it's a song.

Thought I already posted a reply here. Anyway, I pity all you people making fun of Peckham--if I were you lot living over there, I'd be organizing how to buy a place there instead of making fun of Iya Risikat the yam-pounder and Nkechi the pure-water seller Peckham's well in line for serious gentrification, just like Notting Hill and even Kilburn back in the days. There was a time when north London wasn't so posh, but you'd pay an arm and a leg just to share a space there now, not to talk of actually owning one. Better organize a way to get into council housing sharp-sharp!

I have it at home--I can upload it later today.

Okay--now I'm confused, because I can definitely see a picture up there. If you guys are saying this is a joke, what the hell am I staring at It's incredible,

texazzpete:
@TerraCotta
Microsoft Zune isn't a rip-off of ipod! The Apple ipod wasnt the first mp3 player to hit the market, it just became the coolest. Are u saying that offerings from Creative and samsung are also ipod rip-offs?
Microsoft brought to market a competing product, with its own unique features. It's like saying the PSP is a rip-off of the Nntendo DS or the PS3 is a rip=off of the xbox360. Why?

Texazz--you're confusing technology with marketing. Nobody gave two shits about MP3 players until Apple made them "cool". For the ipod to become "the coolest" took innovative industrial design, market research, as well as new tech (the iTunes concept, for example). It wasn't some accident of fate, which is why no other company's been able to duplicate or exceed their success in that market. Why do you think Microsoft didn't put out an MP3 player before Apple? Simply put--Apple changed the MP3 player market forever with the iPod, and the Zire is a reaction to that. It's not just being first with an idea, or even having a superior tech concept (the failures of Beta-Max tapes and competing DVD formats shows you that). It's their total approach to product development that makes Apple a visionary company--everybody recognizes that, even the leading execs at Microsoft. Na your yawa if you don't agree--read the article I posted to for irrefutable proof of how closely Microsoft follows Apple's footsteps.

After all, apple didnt make the first portable video player with HDD. Creative beat them to video playback. But you'll never catch an apple fanboy claiming Apple ripped off Creative.
And apple sure as hell didnt comeup witht he first touchscreen phone. they ripoffs too?

LOL @ this fanboy shit--I just like great marketing and cool technology. I don't much care about Apple, portable video players, or some yob on a Naija website with an axe to grind with Steve Jobs. I don't even own an iPod--it's more of a fashion accessory than anything else in NYC. Everybody and their grandmother's got one. Even those jokers from the surrounding suburbs have them . I still admire the product from a business standpoint, though. I'm all about objectivity, and it's clear that where Apple leads, Microsoft follows. Doesn't mean that Apple doesn't do the same thing to other tech firms--it just means that Bill Gates is a bigger Steve Jobs fanboy than I ever will be

texazzpete:
exactly which concept did they get from apple? Is Apple the only company allowed to make an aesthetically pleasing OS, or is there a patent out for 'beautiful OS'?
get real. Also, i really don't think experience Mac owners were targeted by windows vista. like Bill Gates said, the biggest competitor to Windows Vista is Windows XP! Convincing the massive Xp userbase to upgrade is the primary task, not wooing over the hardcore apple users. Most reviewers agree vista is the best Window ever, but what they say is that it isn't yet a must-upgrade from XP. it'll get there eventually,

True--there's no inherent reason why a Mac user would switch over to Vista. I think Ehie's point has to do with fact that certain features of Vista were developed specifically to compete with the Mac OS, as described in this article. Microsoft's larger market share doesn't mean that they are innovators--they've always taken their cues from Apple, since the days of the first version of Windows/ditching the MS-DOS system to the iPod rip-off called Microsoft Zire.

For Mac lovers, the advantages of OS X go way beyond the pretty graphics. I've got nothing against Microsoft--I have a Windows machine at home right now, but I've always owned Macs and worked on them since I was in college. They're great machines and the company's always been a leader, even if they have less than 5% of the overall market share. The story I linked to quotes a private e-mail from the former head developer at Microsoft (Jim Allchin) where he writes "I would buy a Mac today if I was not working at Microsoft."