Quote Originally Posted by PanzerJaeger View Post
People do not seem to realize that many if not most of these protestors hate the West only slightly less than they hate their own governments.
Certainly, in the short term our interests may be damaged. But in the long term these revolts are for the best. Autocracies are brittle things, as these protests show. Democracies/republics are generally much more stable. So we aren't popular? So what? Or to quote my favorite essay on the subject: "We should be cheered when other nations start to 'find their voice', not because it is in our interests, but despite the fact that it may not be."

Quote Originally Posted by PanzerJaeger View Post
Radical changes in the latter could have disastrous and far reaching consequences far greater than the 9/11 or any terrorist attack.
Three thoughts:

(1) What's your alternative? More of the same for ever and ever, ad infinitum?

(2) These revolts utterly demolish the myth of Al Qaeda, that only jihad and suicide bombings can bring change. The young people bringing down their autocracies pull the rug out from under Islamist extremist ideology rather completely.

(3) Do you think the USA is in a position to prevent or shape these revolts? How so? Since these appear to be legitimate, homegrown revolutions, how would we go about preventing or squashing them? And what would be the long-term cost if we failed, but were seen to help the corrupt ancien regimes?