The power of words

And a little strength to back it up.
Farid Ghadry, the president of the Reform Party of Syria (a US based opposition party, pro-democracy) was interviewed by the National Review.
When asked if the Syrian people will be encouraged by the Lebanese uprising, he replies:

In my talks with the Syrians inside Syria, they are resisting demonstrating because as one human-rights activist told me: "President Bush has yet to call for freedom for the Syrian people." The Syrians are afraid to march without the international cover and the encouraging words of our president. We believe that the moment Syria leaves Lebanon, the president will hammer a strategy for Syrians to gain their freedom and democracy away from a culture of violence that is besieging Iraqis, Lebanese, and now Israelis.

Wow. One wonders if the Bush administration knew how well their strategy would be in promoting democracy in the entire region by forcing it in only one of them. Can this really work? And can it be applied to Iran? I'm betting the answer is yes.