The Revolution in Tunisia

The surprise revolution in Tunisia which toppled a 23 year old repressive regime has surprised most of the world particularly the Arabs because it was not suppose to happen this way. It started with a the self-immolation of a young person who was selling perishables whom the authorities deemed that it did not have a license and then it escalated into street protests and it is still going on. Copy cat protests and demonstrations have started in Egypt and Jordan and the passive public fed up with high food prices, limited job opportunities and the extravagant life styles of their leaders are venting their wrath on the streets of the Arab world.

This was bound to happen sooner or later. But it will be interesting to watch that if there will be a domino effect from the Tunisian revolution and how the U.S. backed government in that area fare in the longer run. For now, the governments in the Arab world are firmly in control and the people are too passive and timid to mount any real challenge to the Arab rulers. But you never know and before it starts to become anti-American protests, the U.S. should do well to support them. But would American government support such protests which may bring Anti American governments all over the Middle East, which is the question the leaders in Washington must be grappling with now.