Don’t be shy!

Can’t wait to see the actual report on 9/11, especially the section about the alleged Iranian connection.  In anticipation, I looked at Ledeen’s latest musings.  Lots of interesting stuff.  I must admit, though, that nothing our ruling clergy does can surprise me much.  They have blood on their hands…mostly our own citizens’.  That said, how does one settle the issue of Ledeen’s allegations? How credible is he?   Take this section of his article about a recent meeting in Iran: 
 
At the recent meetings in Tehran between a Syrian delegation led by President Bashar Assad and the Iranians, including Supreme Leader Khamenei and top deputies including strongman Rafsanjani, the head of intelligence Yunesi, several leading officials of the Revolutionary Guards, and Foreign Minister Kharazi, the two sides agreed on five key points:
 
A common strategy involving Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah to thwart American plans for the democratization of the Middle East;
 
Coordination of joint operations against the Coalition and the interim government in Iraq;Coordination of political strategy to influence groups and countries that oppose the American presence in Iraq;
 
Planning for revenge should Israel attack Iranian nuclear, chemical or missile sites, or Syria's chemical and missile sites, or Hezbollah bases;
 
Full cooperation to prevent the reelection of President Bush, including all possible measures (such as sabotage of oil pipelines and terminals) to drive up the price of oil.

Mr. Ledeen’s own words can be instructive on how to evaluate reports of events that can’t possibly be common knowledge. 
 
This is Mr. Ledeen of The Agency Rides Again:
 
“ML: It's fascinating to watch the anti-Chalabi campaign in Washington. You probably can't keep up with it, but some intel officials in town are saying two things to the journalists: 1) We broke the Iranians' communication codes, so we were reading their mail. Chalabi found out about this, and told the Iranian intelligence chief in Baghdad. 2) The Iranian immediately contacted Tehran to tell them that we had broken the code. Then they said to journalists, "you can't write about this because it would jeopardize our people."
 
JJA: So they're saying that the Iranians' chief operative in Baghdad told Tehran that their codes had been broken...and his message was sent in the same code?
 
ML: Seems so.
 
JJA: Hahahahahahaha. Impossible! If the Iranians knew that we were reading their mail, they would never let us know that they knew. They would continue to use the codes, but instead of sending accurate messages they would use those channels for disinformation against us.
 
ML: Yes, they're smart enough for that. I've often said that they may be crazy, but they are certainly not stupid.
 
JJA: Furthermore, using the same logic, if we knew that Chalabi had told the Iranians, we would never go public with the accusations. We would use Chalabi to disinform them. And the information that we had broken the Iranian code doesn't compromise human sources, because most codebreaking is done by supercomputers, and isn't obtained from spies.
 
ML: So what was this all about?
 
JJA: Oh, I think it's mostly political, and has little if anything to do with intelligence. The CIA loves to smear people they don't like with claims of super-secret intelligence that rarely exists. 
 
Mr. Ledeen can’t possibly be “dumber” than Iranian operatives, or the CIA, can he?
 
On a personal note: light blogging will have to continue for a bit longer.  But I was thinking today: aside from the occasional insult and those brief notes expressing intense desire to see us carpet bombed by B-52s or simply having our genitals fed to the pigs, I also receive emails from incredibly interesting cheloveks who give me hope about the future.  I know there are quite a few out there who have never written to say hello! 

 So, I am thinking today, life might be all too brief really.  Who can know where any of us might end up in a few short months?!!   So, be a darling and introduce yourselves, and share some of your insights or concerns.  Someone reminded me recently of what a fascinating sort of territory cyberspace can be.  Being neighborly requires occasional greetings, don’t you agree