It's a pity that both sides can't lose in the war that broke out between rival generals in Sudan on Saturday, but the best that the 48 million Sudanese can hope for now is that one side loses quickly. Beyond that, it's all bad: the rival generals both want to strangle the democratic revolution that began in Khartoum four years ago.
It was a long overdue revolution. The previous military dictator, Omar al-Bashir, was in power for 30 years, waging constant wars against minority groups and handing huge chunks of the economy over to military interests while civilian living standards stagnated.
Bashir overthrew the elected government in 1989 for negotiating with separatist rebels in the south, but he ended up having to let South Sudan go himself.
