dominoes

But hell's bells, what in Allah's name is going on?

—Reihan of The American Scene

My sentiments exactly. In fact, the last time I remember this kind of energy was the summer and fall of 1989. Though the analogy is very far from perfect: the Middle East, after all, is not Eastern Europe.

But consider what has transpired just in the last two days.

The Lebanese government has resigned en masse, and protesters are joining across sectarian lines, pitching a tent city in downtown Beirut—just like in Kiev two months ago.

Israel is about to present evidence of Syrian complicity in last week's Tel Aviv bombing to EU ministers and representatives of nations on the UN Security Council.

Syria—a nation now displaying severe bipolar tendencies—has handed over to the Iraqi government some two dozen wanted Ba'athists, including a half-brother of Saddam Hussein.

On a grim note, a suicide terrorist launched the single most deadly bombing inside Iraq to date: well over 100 killed, most police and national guard recruits.

There's more, but I can hardly keep up. Visit Across the Bay for superb analysis by Lebanese blogger Tony Badran, and Syria Comment for insight and updates from Joshua Landis, a US professor currently in Syria. (See in particular this post by Landis.)

For the big picture, Publius Pundit—a relatively new group blog devoted to covering “global liberty and democracy movements”, from Ukraine to Lebanon to Tajikistan—simply cannot be beat. (Be sure to check out the blogroll: it's kinda what mine would look like, were I to ever get around to finishing it.)

It's getting very late tonight, so I'll close by quoting Reihan again.

Seriously, this is madness. I'm bracing myself for a major reversal. Meanwhile, I'm hoping that my senses aren't leading me astray, and that we really are, in small and important ways, kicking ass. Not that this is the right way to think about deeply complex and pressing affairs of state.

Perhaps not, though right now it is very tempting. But as Han Solo once said: Don't get cocky, kid.

Save that for free elections in Tehran.

Recall that the domino theory was ridiculed in the lead-up to the Iraq War...

Yes: a long history of ridicule, going all the way back to the anti-anti-communists.

Who were wrong then, too.