TightWind is written by Kyle Baxter. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Nicholas Kristof thinks the White House should fully support the protests in Egypt:

All of this presents the White House with a conundrum. It’s difficult to abandon a longtime ally like Mr. Mubarak, even if he has been corrupt and oppressive. But our messaging isn’t working, and many Egyptian pro-democracy advocates said they feel betrayed that Americans are obsessing on what might go wrong for the price of oil, for Israel, for the Suez Canal — instead of focusing on the prospect of freedom and democracy for the Egyptian people.

Maybe I’m too caught up in the giddiness of Tahrir Square, but I think the protesters have a point. Our equivocation isn’t working. It’s increasingly clear that stability will come to Egypt only after Mr. Mubarak steps down. It’s in our interest, as well as Egypt’s, that he resign and leave the country. And we also owe it to the brave men and women of Tahrir Square — and to our own history and values — to make one thing very clear: We stand with the peaceful throngs pleading for democracy, not with those who menace them.

At this point, I think that’s right. I wrote earlier that up until Saturday, hedging our position was the right choice. But after Saturday, that changed; the protests did not weaken and they have strengthened since.

It’s clear Egypt will see significant change soon. It’s time for us to fully swing our support to the people fighting for democracy.

It isn’t a simple issue; the next government could, even if not radically Islamist, nullify Egypt’s peace treaty with Israel, which could lead to significant instability in the region. That’s not to be taken lightly. But what else is important is there is a real, organic movement for freedom and democracy in Egypt, one that looks like it will topple a dictatorship, and we would be remiss as a country of liberty not to support them.