Tunisia showing it's possible to bring down the corrupt SOB that ran your country for 25-30 years. That and I think the price of basic foodstuffs rose by a large amount.

My take: Free market principles introduced due to American backing, when the financial crisis hit it lead to increased food prices and huge unemployment - especially among the large young population. This is also what happened in Tunisia. When the 2010 election as expected turned out to be a sham, and Mubarak continued to uphold the "state of emergency" for the 29-th year, the disaffected population was left with no way to legally better their situation. When they saw (on Al Jazeera) how Tunisians successfully managed to kick out their long-sitting dictator through a popular revolt, a grass-root movement formed and people took to the streets.

TL:DR: Young people + unemployment + hated dictator + Tunisian revolution + Al Jazeera = Egyptian Revolution Baby!

For more information:
News and good in-depth analysis
http://english.aljazeera.net/
Live coverage
http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/
(the Tunisian and Egyptian revolts are doing for Al Jazeera what the Gulf War did for CNN: )

More commentary and analysis
http://www.jadaliyya.com/

LA Times got a rater good coverage of the situation
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/

Commentary from an Angry Arab-American Atheist Academican (As'ad AbuKhalil)
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/
(useful to gauge the quality of the "experts" the news media rely on)

The CIA has been aggressively fanning the flames and providing logistical support for influential individuals.

The U.S government has a stake in removing mubarak.

So what are they going to replace the corrupt regime with? Not a shitty theocracy I hope.

Wow, thats a lot of good info.

Ill bet a democracy is on its way, the CIA will see to that.

Historically, revolutions result in virtually the same government with the same institutions being set up... except with different names for everything. See: the French Revolution, Iranian Revolution, Russian Revolution, any change in dynasty in any monarchic country since the beginning of time, etc.

Hopefully, Egypt will be the exception.

Yeah that American revolution sure was Sisyphean amirite

CIA wants to bring the pharaohs and slavery back

The CIA has nothing to do with this you tinfoil hat retard.

The CIA sleeps with your mom.

I've read in several places that many looters, after being captured, were carrying police ID which implies that they were being ordered to do so in order to undercut the protesters (and force more of them to protect their homes rather than protest). It's merely speculation backed by extensive circumstantial evidence, but there's not enough room in the title for such subtlety.

And scratch your face with your pistol barrel.