As you mentioned in another message, Tom, I also believe that "Cindy Sheehan is a catalyst, not The Cause." In this case, though, I think that what's interesting about Doug's gossip is not so much Sheehan per se as the nature of modern political communication (especially political communication in the United States), which political consultants and public relations experts dominate, unless activists resist it. How we can resist it, however, is far from clear. This is not one of those things for which typical political mobilizations -- usually organized around Do's and Don't's -- can at all become effective. It's one of those things for which we need to keep eyes out, while chipping away at it with unorthodox weapons -- such as gossip and humor.
More generally, gossips, rumors, and the like may even be the stuff of which most important political communication is made. Experts and consultants are trying to colonize this territory, too -- they call it "viral communication."
Yoshie Furuhashi <http://montages.blogspot.com> <http://monthlyreview.org> <http://mrzine.org> * Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: <http://montages.blogspot.com/2005/07/mahmoud- ahmadinejads-face.html>; <http://montages.blogspot.com/2005/07/chvez- congratulates-ahmadinejad.html>; <http://montages.blogspot.com/ 2005/06/iranian-working-class-rejects.html>