Your comparison is "apples and oranges". The differences between the French revolution and Arab spring are huge, not least because of the cultural differences between the two regions and times. Even the more recent Russian revolution is very almost a century ago; and occurred in a country which was basically pre-industrial, in which many of the peasants regarded the Tsar as a living God.

In order to produce a meaningful comparison you'd have to choose contemporary European revolutions. The best comparison would probably be with Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution, and Georgia's 2003 Rose Revolution. Perhaps comparing specifically with Egypt and Iran's recent and respective revolutions. In that case they actually seem more similar than different.

After Egypt's revolutionary period the military returned the state to business as usual, and Ukraine's first post-revolution election saw the the president, whose corruption caused the revolution in the first place, re-elected. This led to business as usual in Ukraine, later sparking the Euromaiden protests. Post-Maiden Ukraine is a mess (like Libya or Syria), and even though the whole point of both uprisings was to tackle corruption; it's still a severe problem.

The reason things stayed the same seems largely because the revolutions didn't change their nation's structural problems. In comparison revolutionary France and Russia saw a complete overhaul of national institutions; for instance, Napoleon required the civil service to allocate people based on merit. Prior to this the "ancien regime" appointed jobs by the nobility of one's family. Fast forwards to the present, and the new elections and presidents were more cosmetic than effective. The institutions of the state remained the same; which is to say that in Egypt the military still monopolised power, and in Ukraine the oligarchs still monopolised power.

Ukraine's political instability continued in large part because of the demographics of the country. Ukraine's oligarchs belong to the Russian-speaking minority in the east, and are supported by Russia. The majority however do not identify as Russian, and have little of the country's wealth or power. Until this is remedied their frustrations are likely to result in continuing political unrest.

Egypt and Iran do not have the same dynamic, as their respective ethnic majorities control their most powerful institutions. These institutions also enjoy significant popular support. Both institutions; the military of Egypt and government of Iran also have extensive internal security apparatus, Iran especially... organisations instrumental in countering any revolts.

Your comparison is "apples and oranges". The differences between the French revolution and Arab spring are huge, not least because of the cultural differences between the two regions and times. Even the more recent Russian revolution is very almost a century ago; and occurred in a country which was basically pre-industrial, in which many of the peasants regarded the Tsar as a living God.

In order to produce a meaningful comparison you'd have to choose contemporary European revolutions. The best comparison would probably be with Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution, and Georgia's 2003 Rose Revolution. Perhaps comparing specifically with Egypt and Iran's recent and respective revolutions. In that case they actually seem more similar than different.

After Egypt's revolutionary period the military returned the state to business as usual, and Ukraine's first post-revolution election saw the the president, whose corruption caused the revolution in the first place, re-elected. This led to business as usual in Ukraine, later sparking the Euromaidan protests. Post-Maidan Ukraine is a mess (like Libya or Syria), and even though the whole point of both uprisings was to tackle corruption; it's still a severe problem.

The reason things stayed the same seems largely because the revolutions didn't change their nation's structural problems. In comparison revolutionary France and Russia saw a complete overhaul of national institutions; for instance, Napoleon required the civil service to allocate people based on merit. Prior to this the "ancien regime" appointed jobs by the nobility of one's family. Fast forwards to the present, and the new elections and presidents were more cosmetic than effective. The institutions of the state remained the same; which is to say that in Egypt the military still monopolised power, and in Ukraine the oligarchs still monopolised power.

Ukraine's political instability continued in large part because of the demographics of the country. Ukraine's oligarchs belong to the Russian-speaking minority in the east, and are supported by Russia. The majority however do not identify as Russian, and have little of the country's wealth or power. Until this is remedied their frustrations are likely to result in continuing political unrest.

Egypt and Iran do not have the same dynamic, as their respective ethnic majorities control their most powerful institutions. These institutions also enjoy significant popular support. Both institutions; the military of Egypt and government of Iran also have extensive internal security apparatus, Iran especially... organisations instrumental in countering any revolts.

Your comparison is "apples and oranges". The differences between the French revolution and Arab spring are huge, not least because of the cultural differences between the two regions and times. Even the more recent Russian revolution is very almost a century ago; and occurred in a country which was basically pre-industrial, in which many of the peasants regarded the Tsar as a living God.

In order to produce a meaningful comparison you'd have to choose contemporary European revolutions. The best comparison would probably be with Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution, and Georgia's 2003 Rose Revolution. Perhaps comparing specifically with Egypt and Iran's recent and respective revolutions. In that case they actually seem more similar than different.

After Egypt's revolutionary period the military returned the state to business as usual, and Ukraine's first post-revolution election saw the the president, whose corruption caused the revolution in the first place, re-elected. This led to business as usual in Ukraine, later sparking the Euromaiden protests. Post-Maiden Ukraine is a mess (like Libya or Syria), and even though the whole point of both uprisings was to tackle corruption; it's still a severe problem.

The reason things stayed the same seems largely because the revolutions didn't change their nation's structural problems. New elections and presidents were more cosmetic than effective. The institutions of the state remained the same; which is to say that in Egypt the military still monopolised power, and in Ukraine the oligarchs still monopolised power.

Ukraine's political instability continued in large part because of the demographics of the country. Ukraine's oligarchs belong to the Russian-speaking minority in the east, and are supported by Russia. The majority however do not identify as Russian, and have little of the country's wealth or power. Until this is remedied their frustrations are likely to result in continuing political unrest.

Egypt and Iran do not have the same dynamic, as their respective ethnic majorities control their most powerful institutions. These institutions also enjoy significant popular support. Both institutions; the military of Egypt and government of Iran also have extensive internal security apparatus, Iran especially... organisations instrumental in countering any revolts.

Your comparison is "apples and oranges". The differences between the French revolution and Arab spring are huge, not least because of the cultural differences between the two regions and times. Even the more recent Russian revolution is very almost a century ago; and occurred in a country which was basically pre-industrial, in which many of the peasants regarded the Tsar as a living God.

In order to produce a meaningful comparison you'd have to choose contemporary European revolutions. The best comparison would probably be with Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution, and Georgia's 2003 Rose Revolution. Perhaps comparing specifically with Egypt and Iran's recent and respective revolutions. In that case they actually seem more similar than different.

After Egypt's revolutionary period the military returned the state to business as usual, and Ukraine's first post-revolution election saw the the president, whose corruption caused the revolution in the first place, re-elected. This led to business as usual in Ukraine, later sparking the Euromaiden protests. Post-Maiden Ukraine is a mess (like Libya or Syria), and even though the whole point of both uprisings was to tackle corruption; it's still a severe problem.

The reason things stayed the same seems largely because the revolutions didn't change their nation's structural problems. In comparison revolutionary France and Russia saw a complete overhaul of national institutions; for instance, Napoleon required the civil service to allocate people based on merit. Prior to this the "ancien regime" appointed jobs by the nobility of one's family. Fast forwards to the present, and the new elections and presidents were more cosmetic than effective. The institutions of the state remained the same; which is to say that in Egypt the military still monopolised power, and in Ukraine the oligarchs still monopolised power.

Ukraine's political instability continued in large part because of the demographics of the country. Ukraine's oligarchs belong to the Russian-speaking minority in the east, and are supported by Russia. The majority however do not identify as Russian, and have little of the country's wealth or power. Until this is remedied their frustrations are likely to result in continuing political unrest.

Egypt and Iran do not have the same dynamic, as their respective ethnic majorities control their most powerful institutions. These institutions also enjoy significant popular support. Both institutions; the military of Egypt and government of Iran also have extensive internal security apparatus, Iran especially... organisations instrumental in countering any revolts.