You have to see this. Right-wing "human rights" organization "Freedom" House, publishes annual ranking of "free" countries around the world. It was a major tool in US foreign policy during the Cold War as "fredom" was defined was the extent to which a country conforms to US wishes. Notice in this ranking, Jordan, Morocco, and Bahrain (the same three countries saluted by Bush in his state of the Union speech) are ranked ahead of Lebanon. Well, Lebanon, with all its problems, is certainly more free and more open that the three countries. Jordan is certainly one of the more oppressive states, especially as they have a long (probably proud for the Saudi royal family of Jordan) record of torture against dissidents.