

This is FREE intelligence for distribution. Forward this to your colleagues.
Taking Stock of WikiLeaks
Julian Assange has declared that geopolitics will be separated into
pre-“Cablegate” and post-“Cablegate” eras. That was a bold claim.
However, given the intense interest that the leaks produced, it is a
claim that ought to be carefully considered. Several weeks have passed
since the first of the diplomatic cables were released, and it is time
now to address the following questions: First, how significant were the
leaks? Second, how could they have happened? Third, was their release a
crime? Fourth, what were their consequences? Finally, and most
important, is the WikiLeaks premise that releasing government secrets is
a healthy and appropriate act a tenable position?
Let’s begin by recalling that the U.S. State Department documents
constituted the third wave of leaks. The first two consisted of
battlefield reports from Iraq and Afghanistan. Looking back on those as a
benchmark, it is difficult to argue that they revealed information that
ran counter to informed opinion. I use the term “informed opinion”
deliberately. For someone who was watching Iraq and Afghanistan with
some care over the previous years, the leaks might have provided
interesting details but they would not have provided any startling
distinction between the reality that was known and what was revealed.
If, on the other hand, you weren’t paying close attention, and WikiLeaks
provided your first and only view of the battlefields in any detail,
you might have been surprised. Read more »