AND NOW SYRIA – AT 8:46 A.M. ET:  Syria, the Arab country that is most linked to Iran, is also erupting.  If it should become destabilized, the story would be much larger than Libya.  Syria is one of the most militant, and important of Arab countries. 

(CNN) -- Tensions boiled in a volatile Syrian community Thursday as thousands turned up for the funerals of people killed in unrest. Meanwhile, Syria's government blamed the instability on outsiders and announced plans to study popular demands, including the lifting of the country's decades-old emergency law.

Syria is the latest in a string of Arabic-speaking nations beset with discontent over economic and human rights issues. Syrian discontent centers on Daraa, a southern city in the impoverished country's agricultural region, where violence has been escalating between security forces and anti-government protesters since late last week.
Wissam Tarif, executive director of the human rights organization Insan, said at least 34 people have been killed in Daraa in the past two days. Other activists believe many more have been killed.

Tarif said as many as 20,000 people followed the funeral procession for those who died in the violence, including a conscripted soldier who was reportedly shot and wounded because he refused to fire on demonstrators.

COMMENT:  What is remarkable about all these revolutions and mini-revolutions in the Arab world is how surprised and shocked many journalists are.  For years the mainstream media, and its enablers in the universities, have been telling us that the only important issue in the Mideast was the "plight of the Palestinians."  Strange, but they haven't been mentioned recently.  You don't think we've been misled, do you?  Yes I do. 

But there is no guarantee that any of these revolts will result in better societies or governments.  Lebanon, which was also in revolt not long ago, is now completely dominated by Hezbollah.  And we saw what happened to Hungary and Czechoslovakia, in Eastern Europe, when they tried to break free of the Soviet Union.  It took the USSR's collapse to free them.

We are going to have an interesting year, and it leads right into the 2012 American elections.

March 25, 2011