The great to-do about the release of the purloined 250,000 State Dept. Emails,
cables and memos is a tempest in a tea pot. The authors of the documents know the
contents and purposes. Their opposite numbers who dealt with each other are pretty
much aware of the opinions about each other, whether or not couched in diplomatic language. So the release is a case of "bad manners", a breach of diplomatic form.
There is however a real danger posed by WikiLeaks, which is not so obvious. Machiavellian minds can use it to plant mischievous and untrue material designed to
be discovered and released. The damage that could result could vary from nuisance to calamity. Because of its success in gaining access to classified material, WikiLeaks
enjoys great credibility. That lends itself to material which it releases. So let us
consider a hypothetical scenario: WikiLeaks uncovers a top secret memo from the
Israel government to the U.S. President, planted by the Saudis, advising him that Israel has decided that for its survival it must eliminate nuclear weapons that would become available to Iran. Further, that if international pressure does not succeed in halting Iran's development of such weapons,
Israel will launch an all out attack to destroy Iran's nuclear manufacturing facilities. The deadline is the approaching Ramadan Muslim holy period.
When the memo falls into the hands of Iran imagine the consequences.
Such scenario is not far fetched. Recall the case of the "man who never was" in
WWII. The British planted a corpse on a Normandy beach, who had been disguised as
a high ranking officer, apparently lost from a sunken British vessel. Chained to his wrist was a diplomatic pouch containing the plans for the site of the D Day invasion.
That was not the site to be. Believing the very credible hoax, the Germans diverted their powerful back-up forces and assured the success of the actual invasion.
Could the "man who never was" be the Email that never was?
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"Could the "man who never was" be the Email that never was?" - Absolutely!
Al Qaida may be comprised of largely misled Islamic youth but their leaders have demonstrated an ability to spend their drug money for extremely expert resources. Paying for someone to exacerbate the Wikileaks credibility hole is a "no brainer" and is probably already a project in the works.
Wikileaks is a self-serving attempt at notoriety and serves no civil purpose. Unfortunately, that kind of self aggrandisement is extraodinarily popular in our "wired" world because it is quick and enticing. Fodder for "Tea Party" adjutants and other empty-headed eggplants around the world. Since the economic downturn fewer and fewer objective reporters are available to provide reliable information so Wikileaks has become the new trusted source of news regardless of verifiable evidence.
Conflict in the middle east is and always has been assured so we should not be surprised when the next issue arises between Iran and any or every other nation. This, too, was our doing when Americans set up the Iranian people for demagoguery under the rule of the Shaw. After all this time our actions still haunt us but now that plastic authoritarianism is poisoning Iran's relations with all other Islamic cultures.
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