Whether one thinks NSA leaker Edward Snowden a hero or a villain, the manifesto (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/10154064/Edward-Snowdens-WikiLeaks-statement-in-full.html)recently attributed to him is clearly not written by an American. This makes Snowden deceptive or too insipid to stand up to his handler(s) and articulate his own thoughts. Here, through an investigator's lens, are some of the telltale indicators that someone without an ear for Standard American English is putting words into the leaker's mouth:
- "My freedom and safety were under threat." This is not idiomatic, American English. Americans don't say "under threat." We might say "my freedom and safety were threatened" or something "threatened my freedom and safety."
- "My continued liberty has been owed" follows the same pattern. It is out of place. Americans do not say "has been owed" when they can say "I owe my continued freedom to ..."
- "Extralegal penalty" is the kind of term only a lawyer would use, not something to spring forth from a young, unworldly techie.
- "The United States of America have been" is a dead giveaway. USA is singular, not plural. Drunk or sober, a native American English speaker won't get this wrong.
- "Their purpose is to frighten, not me, but those who would come after me" suggests the author has come to English as a second language. The punctuation is wrong for "not me" but the real tell is the incorrect use of "come after me." The author clearly means to use this term in the sense of those who follow in his or her place. However, "come after" in this usage lends itself to the interpretation of "chase me." To an American speaker and writer, "come after me" is something to expect of pursuers, not apostles.
What this manifesto reveals is not Snowden's depth so much as his lack of substance. By letting an unseen puppet master pull his strings, the Snowden marionette only proves himself a pawn in someone else's game.
-- Nick Catrantzos
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Nick Catrantzos + Tom Goff
- All Secure
- NICK CATRANTZOS is the lead author of the All Secure website and is the emeritus security director for a large public organization. He has also managed security aspects of corporate takeovers, response to international hostage situations, and finding and keeping secrets. He has been board certified in security management, licensed as a private investigator, and certified as an incident commander. He worked as a case officer for a discreet branch of public service. He protected stealth technology at Lockheed and, later, as a consulting security director for both Kroll and Control Risks, he assisted executives with workplace violence cases and with protecting VIPs and critical assets globally in volatile areas. Nick's partner, TOM GOFF, was a captain in the Military Police Corps, U.S. Army Reserve and has a law degree from the University of California at Davis. He is a former reporter for Fortune Magazine, was senior editor at New York Magazine and Esquire, and has provided crisis and communications counsel to senior executives at Fortune 500 companies, including Lockheed, ARCO, Microsoft, Nissan, and Sony Pictures.