Marty Schwimmer, in tracking how an ironic comment on a blog about Supreme Court nominee John Roberts was amplified and recast as a slur: "Gordon Allport, in the 'The Psychology of Rumor' describes the manner in which rumors are transmitted: The story is leveled - details essential for understanding... are removed. The story is sharpened - the source of the 'facts' are no longer Wikipedia and the NY Times but 'the left' and 'Democrats.' The story is assimilated - the story is changed to make sense to those spreading the rumor." Read on...