It seems like it is for those countries that require a visa, in order to get the visa, you have to have six months validity left on your passport.
India, Brazil, Colombia (to start) is what i found according to their USA embassies.
It is true that they will honor the agreement you reference, but I am not sure what you mean by
Originally Posted by hfly
"civilized countries"
so you'll have to clarify that for me.