ABCNews Has A Little Scoop On Thomasgate

Check it out:

Franklin Foer, the editor of the New Republic, said that he has met Thomas here in the States and that he is "absolutely certain" that he is a soldier in Iraq. "Not an ounce of doubt," he told ABCNEWs.com. Asked about how he attempted to verify Thomas' military credentials, Foer said, "I've got many, many data points to back that up" although one of those proofs didn't include a military e-mail account.

Well, I just wrote a big post about my "near certainty" this guy was a soldier, and here I am walking into the trap anyway.

Still, interesting -- wouldn't Foer want that military email address for simple confirmation purposes? If he hasn't secured this elemental evidence, I can't say I have a lot of confidence in his "many, many data points."

The article, by the way, quotes Michael Goldfarb of the Weekly Standard blog and BlackFive.

Dan Riehl notes that TNR claims they've finally confirmed the mere existence of the disfigured woman, who they know identify as a civilian contractor (something that soldier "Scott Thomas" was unable to ascertain based on uniform or lack thereof).

I have a feeling it's going to all be like this. Next up: TNR confirms the presence of Bradley Fighting Vehicles in Iraq.

And also: Dogs.

No Big Deal On Military Email: Jeff at RedState writes:

It doesn't bother me personally, because, were I him, there's no way I'd use a mil computer (and mil email) to send this stuff, even if I could get access to the NIPR long enough to do it.

The FOB (Falcon specifically) is wired with FUBI ("For Us By Iraqis") internet, which is available in most barracks there, and there is also an internet "cafe," so there'd be ample opportunity to be much, much smarter about the whole thing (we are, of course, speaking in relative terms here) and to use a civilian email account from a non-official-business computer, especially if you want less chance of getting caught -- the DOD can and does monitor mil accounts.

Yes... I didn't actually think he'd use the account to send his dispatches, but just to establish he was who he said he was. True, he wouldn't want any contact with TNR's domain, but Google allows one to create lots and lots of account. Foer couldn't have created an account just to receive a message from "Scott Thomas" saying "Hey, bro, what's up?," simply to establish he had access to military computers?

posted by Ace at 03:27 PM

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