Personality Conflicts

  In the following article, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-17389717, the author Rana Jawad of BBC talks about the differences in the personalities of Gaddafi and Assad playing key roles in the Libyan and Syrian uprisings, respectively. 
  Ms. Jawad explains how Gaddafi's image as a "dishevelled loon" perpetuated his isolation in the world.  al-Assad is seen as "suave" and a major player in the Arab world; having a GDP which is largely dependent on oil exports is something that should not be forgotten as well.  We must also remember, despite Gaddafi's apparent lunacy, he was the head of the African Union for many years.  I find the personalities of the two men to be quite similar; both men could be considered sociopaths, willing to kill anyone who opposes them, both had and have all of the country's wealth concentrated in their inner circles, and both were eccentric.  al-Assad, however, has the benefit of hindsight to aid him in his quest to regain control of his country.  Gaddafi's mistakes were many and catastrophic, the least of which was surrendering his nuclear weapons years ago.  While Syria is not a nuclear power, they do enjoy significantly better air defense systems than Gaddafi's Libya did.  This makes the mission for any coalition forces drastically different in Syria than it was in Libya.
  Jawad does explain the allies that Mr. Assad enjoys with Hezbollah and in Tehran, but I believe they will only go so far in supporting Assad.  There is no legitimacy in the eyes of fellow Arabs and the West when one decides to massacre their own people.  Recently, the League of Arab Nations signed a resolution condemning Assad's actions against his people, and UN fact-finders entered the country.  The attacks on cities such as Homs stopped, albeit briefly, but the world has gotten a better glimpse into the country of Syria and the mind of al-Assad as a result.  Aside from the obvious differences and tensions between Western and Arab countries, what the world is waiting for before deciding to take decisive action against Syria is beyond me.  Perhaps the bystander effect is operating on a global scale...