Hhhhokay. So.

Glenn emails Steve to ask if he can interview Dave.

Steve: WTF, moonbat? No way.

Glenn: So you only talk to wingnuts?

Steve: We talk to OMG REEL reporters, not n00bs like you.

Glenn: Whatever, dude. FAIL.

---

Six months later, Steve emails Glenn.

Glenn:

OMG YOU SUXXOR! You're SO not a lawyer or you'd know WE DON"T GOTTA TALK TO YOU. No why? Cuz youre a PUSSSY. You dont know shit and your journalism sucks and you ain't got the BALLS to come over here cause we'll KICK YOUR ASS. Whiny librul!!

No love,

Steve

Glenn: Uh, whatever. What do you guys think?

Forum: AHHAHAHA FAIL!!! Dude's drunk. Dude's stupid. Dude's a typical wingnut!

Forum: Check it out. Maybe it's fake.

Glenn: OK.

---

Glenn: Hey, Steve, did you send this? *copies*

Steve: No.

Glenn: Well, someone did. Aren't you worried?

Steve: It wasn't me.

Steve: And I know it wasn't me because somebody already OMG HACKED into my identity and, like, tried to rent under my name and stuff.

Steve: But they totally don't know who they're dealing with, so yeah whatever. I'll deal with it. And it's none of your business how, kthx.

Steve: And I'm not talking to you anymore. *flounces out*

Glenn: Okkkay...

---

Wow. I mean, WOW.

To see the kind of grade-school shenanigans that are common coin on Harry Potter boards employed by a Colonel of the U.S. Army is just...*sigh* Well, it's just too beautiful to behold. Methinks I may go blind from the glory.

I mean, it's been fun in a bitter, Carlinesque to watch the Bush administration slowly eviscerating itself, and I'd laugh a hell of a lot more if we weren't all caught in their backwash. But this...this is a little bit of heaven.

If I were you Glenn, I would just move on. This guy is not worth the number of words written about the email and, most of all, his behavior being so dismissive and discounting towards you.

What is absolute is that the man is rude, arrogant and abusive.

am I the only person who is deeply disturbed by the fact that someone of of Boylan's intellect, judgment, and education (his writing isn't up to par for most college freshmen), is A) a full bird in the Army; and B) holding a sensitive, PR-intensive position? I've known lots of talented people who didn't make it all the way to colonel after a career in the Army, and here is Boylan, a guy who is maybe -- maybe -- half a cut above the average person who swills beer while sprawled in front of Fox News, and he's got his eagle. Petraeus is supposed to be brilliant; presumably he chose Boylan for the role Boylan is in. And this is the guy the nation has put its faith in to run the whole Iraq war? The guy whose judgment and character cannot be questioned?

By the way, analyzing the IPs and so on is interesting, but analyzing the psychology of the person who wrote these e-mails is at least as revealing. This is a very angry, frustrated person, who wanted to let it out by getting his own back on someone. One wonders what exactly is going on in Colonel Boylan's world -- the world of Iraq, the world where The Surge™ is such a smashing success.

from John Palcewski

to steven.boylan@iraq.centcom.mil

date Oct 29, 2007 4:51 AM

subject Conduct Unbecoming an Officer

mailed-by gmail.com

Dear Col. Boylan:

Your display of unprofessionalism and stunning illiteracy and incoherence in your recent email exchange with Salon columnist Glenn Grenwald is, in my opinion, a violation of Article 133 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which refers to conduct unbecoming an officer and gentleman. You cearly have engaged in "...acts of dishonesty, unfair dealing, indecency, indecorum..." and you ought to resign forthwith.

Sincerely,

John Palcewski

In funding the war, Congress continues to be distracted by the issue of whether the "Glorious Surge is working" or "just one more Freidman Unit and we will know for sure" as a basis for providing more money.

Instead, their focus should be whether the war is being run competently - and from this email (which truly shows the depraved nature of those running this war) and all the other documented screw ups that have occurred and continue to occur -the obvious answer is that it should not be funded on sheer incompetence alone.

But Congress is so inept – it is just another frustrating F U (and that is not short for Friedman Unit this time) to the majority of Americans that want us out of this war in some form or another.

Wondering if Glenn used the best sequence re: posting the email from Boylan.

Wasn't it inevitable there'd be some question about authenticity, given the "bizarre" aspect? (That word "bizarre" was the hook for me to come over from Memeorandum, incidentally).

Why not try to get the confirmation or denial first, with the explanation to Boylan being, "before I post this, I'm checking....etc"? Then if there is a denial and it can be believed, the issue is tabled. If there is a denial and it smells "fishy", then the denial can be checked out and if THAT turns out "faulty" there are TWO stories --- the email and the apparently false denial.

Or, alternatively, it might have been possible for Glenn to simply post the header information, without revealing the contents of the email (yet), with an explanation that "I got an email but before I publish it I want to see how sure I can be that it's not a fake.

Might have been less dramatic, but considering that a couple of days before "going public" would be inconsequential I think I'd have done more to authentic on the very front end. Or am I missing something here.

Fuck you, LMW

I don't recall addressing you. You don't like my posts? Don't read 'em.

-- Garry Owen

When you post the kind of crap you do here, you aren't necessarily addressing anyone in particular, just intentionally offending us all. In this case by trying to bait Mr. Greenwald. I tried to warn Squiggles (~~~~) or the Poster Formerly Known As Real Name about his similar behavior before he got banned. In any case, keep it up and maybe you can get to change your name, too. Then again, perhaps you and Boylan would do better to refrain from posting while intoxicated.