Yesterday's disastrous election reports in Spain and the weekend's news of uprisings in Kurdish Syria and northern Iran has me spinning like a dervish in the wind. Dangerous times, ugly times. I'm starting to suspect that we're seeing Berman's hypothesis demonstrated in real time - that the Islamist terrorists have their true power in the borderlands of the West and Islam, and that their strength in the Arab heartlands was more apparent than real. Cities are burning in revolt - against Ba'athists and Islamic theocratic regimes.

Meanwhile, Wretchard of the Belmont Club has an eloquent post on the Spanish debacle which is worthy of attention. Normally, Wretchard is a bit alarmist for my tastes, but I have to respect that sort of writing.