Arab Monarchies Survive as Republics Falter

Thanks to my brother William Harvey, violin and viola teacher at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, for calling my attention to this interesting New York Times discussion of The Staying Power of Arab Monarchies.  For a variety of reasons, the region's monarchies all appear likely to weather the "Arab Spring" unrest intact, while authoritarian republican regimes have fallen, with more potentially to follow.  What seems inescapable is the conclusion that within any particular cultural context, monarchies generally can offer their people more stability and hope than republics.