ANALYSIS: WIKILEAKS AND NGO INTELLIGENCE

As I read Julian Assange and crew's latest (they've managed to get some videos of Tibetan protest marches up), I had an interesting thought. Anyone familiar with Robert D. Steele's work on intelligence reform may be aware of his arguments for open-source intelligence (OSINT). Most people who follow security affairs who have heard of Steele reduce his thought down to OSINT, much in the same way people unfamiliar with John Boyd's full "Discourse" reduce his ideas down to the OODA loop. However, Steele also argues for a collective, people-powered intelligence system that can provide early warning for humanitarian, law enforcement, and environmental problems.

I'm not suggesting that Wikileaks represents the fulfillment of Steele's vision. But it does suggest that we are getting closer to it.