Sunday, September 18, 2011

From Dissent to Revolt

Failure to heed demands for reform are making any concessions Assad offers to make now too little, too late:

Syria’s uprising has become more violent in the country’s most restive regions, in what may signal the start of a protracted armed struggle after six months of largely peaceful protests in the face of a ferocious government crackdown, diplomats, activists and officials say.

Syrians are fighting back, it seems. Six months of shooting demonstrators has turned protesters into revolutionaries. Remember, it was a long time between Lexington and Concord and our Declaration of Independence. Making real reforms that would have limited--but not ended--Assad's rule could have worked 5 months ago. Now the same proposals won't be accepted by the people in the streets. It is total victory or death for both sides now--or soon will be.