From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

The ripple effect in the Middle East.

Hello again, I'm Orin Alney, and this is To the Poet from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

Since people power

ousted Mubarak of Egypt, protesters have taken to the streets in Bahrain, Yemen, Algeria,

Jordan, Libya, and Iran. Some have been promised reforms. Others encountered tear gas, arrest,

rubber bullets, and live ammunition. Several demonstrators have been killed. The ultimate goals are different

in every country, but the common objectives are an end to repression and respect for human rights. As the

U.S. walks the tightrope between protesters and government allies, does democracy have a chance? Is Turkey

the best model for a modern Islamic state? On reporters' notebook later on, the cyber attack on Iran's nuclear program, first here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio International Program Fund,

whose contributors include the Ford Foundation, the John D. and Catherine

T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation and its campaign for American workers.

More at rockfound.org.

Hello again, Warren. I'll need back with To the Point. Since Mubarak of Egypt was forced out

of the presidency, other Middle Eastern countries have seen massive political protests.

We'll hear about some of their

grievances, their ultimate goals, and the way they've been treated by different regimes.

We'll also hear about Islam and democracy. On reporter's notebook, it turns out the Stuxnet

computer virus really did disable part of Iran's nuclear program, but did it do any lasting damage? First, this update, the Obama

administration's campaigned against a costly alternative engine for the Pentagon's next-generation

...