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One of the things that has baffled me over the past year has been the endless focus on Iranian President Ahmadinejad. I realize that his title of President implies to a westerner that he should be the most powerful man in Iran, but the truth is that he is not. And although I don't expect the average American to become an expert on Iranian politics, I would hope that bloggers who write about Iran with any frequency would take the time to educate themselves a bit about Iran.

Although Ahmadinejad is in fact an elected president, his power is entirely dependent on Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. Khamenei, not Ahmadinejad, is the real power in Iran. It is the Supreme Leader, for example, that serves as their equivalent of our Commander in Chief of the armed forces. It is their Supreme Leader that has the power to declare war. And most importantly, it is the Supreme Leader who can dismiss the President outright.

All of which makes me wonder why so many people spend so much time paying attention to the man. Clearly what he says and does is important. Very important, even. But he is not the real power in the country, and that should always be kept in mine.

Yes, that means you, Andrew. For the last year you've written countless posts building up the threat posed by Ahmadinejad. But now that Ahmadinejad's star is fading inside Iran, you write:

Recent events suggest that Iran is less monolithic in its leadership than we might once have feared

Who is this "we" of which you speak? I for one have never thought Iran was a monolith, and although I'm no expert on the region, it has long been clear to me that Ahmadinejad's grip on power was shaky at best. Iran's Supreme Leader, for example, has long maintained that the Koran prohibits their Islamic Republic from pursuing nuclear weapons. Whether you believe those statements or not, it is clear they are in direct opposition to Ahmadinejad's policies, suggesting that a very real struggle for power was going on inside the country. Or, in other words, Iran is far from "monolithic."