If you're lucky enough not to be obsessed with Middle East politics, you may be surprised to learn that the keynote speaker at Hezbollah's massive Beirut demonstration last week was not a Shiite Muslim but a Maronite Christian. Michel Aoun, the army general who was driven into exile by Syria in 1990 but has been oddly friendly with Syria and its local allies since his return to Lebanon last year, addressed an overwhelmingly Shiite crowd and called for the resignation of Sunni Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.

Once again, the Egyptian regime has responded to violence at home by consolidating the authoritarian structure of the state. On April 30, following two deadly terrorist attacks in the Sinai, President Hosni Mubarak extended the emergency laws that have stifled Egyptian liberties since 1981. Then, just last week, Cairo looked like an army garrison when 10,000 police and security forces cracked down on pro-democracy activists demonstrating to express their support for an independent judiciary.

Once again, the Egyptian regime has responded to violence at home by consolidating the authoritarian structure of the state. On April 30, following two deadly terrorist attacks in the Sinai, President Hosni Mubarak extended the emergency laws that have stifled Egyptian liberties since 1981. Then, just last week, Cairo looked like an army garrison when 10,000 police and security forces cracked down on pro-democracy activists demonstrating to express their support for an independent judiciary.