SOME GOOD NEWS FOR OUR SIDE – AT 10:31 A.M. ET:  Although it took Barack Obama four days to mosey up to a microphone to denounce the suppression of democracy demonstrators in Iran, some Iranian scientists and officials are showing considerably greater guts.  From the Washington Post:

Iran's political turmoil has prompted a growing number of the country's officials to defect or leak information to the West, creating a new flow of intelligence about its secretive nuclear program, U.S. officials said.

The gains have complicated work on a long-awaited assessment of Iran's nuclear activities, a report that will represent the combined judgment of more than a dozen U.S. spy agencies. The National Intelligence Estimate was due last fall but has been delayed at least twice amid efforts to incorporate information from sources who are still being vetted.

Director of National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair said in a brief interview last week that the delay in the completion of the NIE "has to do with the information coming in and the pace of developments."

Some of the most significant new material has come from informants, including scientists and others with access to Iran's military programs, who are motivated by antipathy toward the government and its suppression of the opposition movement after a disputed presidential election in June, according to current and former officials in the United States and Europe who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the intelligence gains.

COMMENT:  So, contrary to the smug opinions of new-style "realists" in Washington, the democracy movement in Iran is indeed producing results. 

When you hear the word "realist" these days, better consider getting some immunity shots.  They're available through many doctors, but, unfortunately, aren't covered by Obamacare. 

April 25, 2010