September 12, 2007: American intelligence agencies, especially the CIA, are becoming more aggressive in complaining openly about politically motivated leaks, and the damage they do. These complaints have long been restricted to classified meetings with members of Congress. This would usually lead to a temporary reduction in the number of leaks. The problem is that too many politicians have access to classified data, and too many of them cannot resist the temptation to use that stuff for political gain. Too many are leaking too much and getting lots of people killed.

Journalists always stand ready to take these leaks and run with them. But now U.S. intel agencies are forcing politicians to face up to the deadly results of those leaks. People die, or suffer other losses (homes, jobs, kin, reputations, peace-of-mind and so on). It's too easy to ignore these losses if you don't know about them. These losses are often kept secret in order to prevent further damage. But the war on terror is putting a lot more people at risk, not so much from the personal peril, but from leaked secrets that tell the terrorists where to attack.