now remember, in the 1960s and '70s, america was often engaged in operations and policies that were clandestine and were actually the opposite of its stated foreign policy. but now in these cables, there are no stories of coups, attempted assassinations or closet deals. washington's secret diplomacy is actually remarkably consistent with its public diplomacy on iran, on north korea, on all kinds of issues. i also have to confess that the level and quality of analysis in these cables is a lot better than i would have guessed. american diplomats come across as sharp, well informed, and lucid with their pens -- or their computer keyboards. the big substantive revelation is that arab regimes worry a lot more about iran than they say so publicly. and they have been urging washington to do something about iran, including using military force. now, that's mighty embarrassing for arab governments that have been lying to their people in