Nothing Ever Changes Except When It Does

Mark Steyn in fine form yet again on the Middle East:

Assad's regime knocks off a troublemaker in Lebanon. Big deal. They've done it a gazillion times. But this time the streets are full of demonstrators demanding an end to Syrian occupation.

A suicide bomber kills four Jews. So what's new? But this time the Palestinians decline to celebrate. And some even question whether being a delivery system for plastic explosives is really all life has to offer, even on the West Bank.

Mubarak announces the arrest of an opposition leader. Like, who cares? The jails are full of 'em. But this time Condi Rice cancels her visit and the Egyptian government notices that its annual cheque from Washington is a month late.

The Left had better burn their shoelaces and belts, because George W. Bush is going to go down in history as one of the greatest liberators mankind has ever known.

The world has changed, and it's changed in large part because Dubya forced it to.