Saffron Revolution

A cyclone hit Burma, killing at least 22,000 and leaving another 40,000 missing and presumed dead.

Will the Burma cyclone lead to political upheaval in one of the world's most oppressive regimes? The indirect impact of environmental crises on politics is well established. Water shortages, flooding, nutrient-poor soils, and deforestation have all put pressure on governments and provided the backdrop to ethnic conflict. But it's been speculated that as populations rise in environmentally, seismically, and climatically fragile zones, unexpected natural events may not only pressure regimes but topple them as well.