A Credo for Armchair Activists

An excellent article from the Cox News Service surveys the phenomenon of grassroots boycotting in the Internet age and offers tips for telling the occasional worthy cause from hoaxes and pointless chain letters. One victim of the latter expresses sincere regret for blacklisting a company she later found out had done no wrong. Her quoted statement would make a fine credo for all would-be activists online. Repeat after me:

"In the future I will not accept as fact information that is sent to me via emails. Even if I do not agree with a political opinion, I won't be party to causing damage based on false reports."