Dude, you are right!
I definitely see the resemblance. Heck for all intents and purposes, the dang optometrist might as well be Ed.
It's my firm belief that Assad is just a puppet. The real rulers of the country are the Baathist military junta.
He's a modern-day Henry VI. A pathetic child-ruler weakling who doesn't want to lead the country but is forced into it, all the while being controlled by the sinister powers behind the throne.