The Economist magazine has come out with its list of best democracies in the world, measured by “60 indicators across five broad categories: free elections, civil liberties, functioning government, political participation and political culture.”

Sweden, a near-perfect democracy, comes top, followed by a bevy of similarly virtuous northern European countries. More surprising are the relatively modest scores for two traditional bastions of democracy—Britain and the United States. In America there has been a perceptible erosion of civil liberties related to the fight against terrorism. Long-standing problems in the functioning of government have also become more prominent. . . .

Why the setbacks in democracy’s spread and quality? The pace of democratisation was bound to slow after the easy gains that followed the fall of the Berlin Wall. China and Middle Eastern autocracies were always going to be a more difficult proposition. . . . And America, which should be a shining example, has damaged its liberty-enlarging cause: its military intervention in Iraq is deeply unpopular around the world, Mr Bush is widely loathed and Guantánamo and other cases of prisoner-abuse have led to charges of hypocrisy against the United States.

Just another nail in the coffin of Bush’s administration and how, despite its fervent statements to the contrary, have made the U.S. less safe, more hated around the world, and in the eyes of the international community, less of a democracy than in administrations past. Bravo, neo-conservatives, bravo!