By Rami G. Khouri, The Daily Star

December 18, 2013: I have learned in life that when you have a stressful problem to ponder or overcome, you should resort to one of three options: take a nap, listen to music, or just wait and let some time pass.

The last option is particularly helpful when you are trying to understand the significance of political developments of the day, such as this week’s third anniversary of the initiation of the current Arab uprisings by Mohammad Bouazizi’s self-immolation. The passage of three years allows us to better understand what is going on across the region, in a way that was not so clear in December 2010.

When Bouazizi, a fruit and vegetables peddler, set himself alight in the rural Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid on Dec. 17, 2010, his spontaneous act comprised a combination of protest, self-assertion and defiance that resonated instantly and widely across the entire Arab world. It launched a series of rolling protests and revolutions that have morphed into wars and chaotic conditions in some countries, and slow constitutional transformations in others.

Read the full article here.