The Bush Doctrine emphasizes democracy as a tonic to defeat terrorism, and human rights is a necessary precursor for a functioning democracy. Egypt, a nominal ally, and Iran, the world's biggest terrorist state, are severely deficient in this regard. First, Egypt:

Police and government supporters beat pro-reform activists with batons, sometimes kicking them as they lay on the ground, during a protest Saturday against President Hosni Mubarak's announcement that he would run for re-election for a fifth time.

And then Iran:

Iran's conservative judiciary has arrested a leading human rights lawyer who was acting in two cases that have sparked international interest, 2003 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi said on Saturday.

It's nice to see the local populations starting to clamor for freedom. While they face enormous challenges and powerful enemies, the people will ultimately prevail. And when they do, as far away as those countries are, we will be safer.

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