And, also, since I have to re-post the pic - BARF ALERT!
Facts are these:
1. This is a digital image of similar quality to military-issue digital cameras I've seen numerous times so far. The pixel distortion (which is present in most Web-sent images) is normal for Net traffic; there appears to be no Photoshop-based disruption. I judge the image to be authentic.2. Further, with the troop in question, we see the unit patch (82 ABN) means less likely to be Afghanistan, then Iraq. He's also in name-tag defilade, cleverly done to conceal his ID from unscrupulous Webbies, Socialists, and a vindictive staffer.
The soldier is ALSO holding, in his left hand which is gripping PIAPS's right hand, what appears to be a soft "boonie" hat. The rank, I'm afraid, is indistinguishable, given the angle and quality of the image. But, further clues are available...
3. Notice the surroundings. This is not a field unit, or even a tactical HQ setting. This is a Brick & Mortar building, with wiring for fluorescent lighting, AC ducts visible in the background, and those are clearly standard cloth-covered stick-pin-friendly partitions, the kind used in staff offices Army-wide. I'm guessing a division HQ or even higher - you KNOW that She would never descend to mingle with the commoners in the rockbox;
4. The decorations on the ceiling indicate a holiday season - Turkey Day or Xmas - so the time frame of the image checks. It also shows that this was not a tactical HQ - decorations as such would be frowned upon;
5. Regarding the positions of the fingers on the left hand - the position is not unassumable, nor is the image distortion overly present; the crossed fingers are true. Also notice, with holding the hat in that hand as well, the thumb and lesser two fingers are with the hat.
CONCLUSIONS: The image is authentic; the soldier is posing for the pic under duress, and is communicating that to the world; whether by design or not, his identity is at least delayed in being revealed by his pose.
Perhaps, an enterprising fellow FReeper could provide us with what The Senatrix's stops were, on Her whirlwind tour. That would give me a baseline to narrow down the details even further.
SARGE