Defining a failed state

Somalia has no functioning central government, no judicial system and last year, an estimated 700,000 of its people became refugees.There are daily gun battles involving a bewildering array of rag tag militias, smugglers, Ethiopian troops and clan warlords.Around 8,000 people — mostly civilians — died in 2007 alone. Most chillingly, the United Nations says more than three million Somalis, just under half of the population, require regular food aid just to survive.
The respected U.S. magazine, Foreign Policy, gives Somalia top ranking on a list of "failed states."more,http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/08/25/f-somalia-analyze.html