Bashar-orama

According to the AP, all the Baathists could muster up for their “Go Bashar!” demonstration in Damascus today was three thousand people… not an especially impressive number for a fascist state. And this is an AP report, so…

UPDATE: Bashar makes a semi-demi-hemi retreat. [Is that like a limited hangout?–ed. No it’s like a limited Hama.] But the US isn’t buying:

WASHINGTON – Keeping up the pressure on Syria, the United States on Saturday strongly criticized President Bashar Assad for announcing only a partial pullback of his troops from Lebanon.

“President Assad’s announcement is not enough,” the State Department said in a statement issued hours after the Syrian leader made the pledge in a speech to parliament.

“As President Bush said Friday, when the United States and France say withdraw, we mean complete withdrawal – no halfhearted measures,” the statement said.

France? Count to ten and see if Chirac undercuts that one. Or can he in this instance?

MORE: Austin Bay… a man who knows his global strategy… has some disturbing reports from Syria. All with the proper caveats. No one said this was going to be easy.