ARTICLE: "Top cleric praises Iranian president," by Douglas Stanglin, USA Today, 25 August 2008, p. 12A.

Interesting that the Supreme Leader suddenly issues a vote of confidence for Ahmadinejad (bit better than the usual norm), praising him specifically for standing up to West ("some bullying and brazen countries") that try "to impose their will" on Iran.

Ahmadinejad might gain considerably in Khamenei's perceived utility in a world more obviously defined by renewed East-West tension and thus lowered cooperation among advanced nations re: Iran's reach for the bomb.

Such recalibrations might signal a system truly perturbed.