Funny Stuff on the Internet - But is it True?

I receive a lot of e-mails with funny (or scary) messages that sound plausible, but set my "phony bone" tingling. I got one this morning about stupid things Congressman and their staffers said to a D.C. ticket agent. It's a hilarious e-mail, but some of the items were just too outrageous to believe - like this one:

I had a New Hampshire Congresswoman ask for an aisle seat so that her hair wouldn't get messed up by being near the window.  (On an airplane!) 

Apparently this e-mail has been making the rounds for years and began with no specific names, but morphed into attribution to certain Congressmen and staffers (mostly liberals). I'm betting one item was payback for liberals' attacks on Sarah Palin:

I got a call from a lawmaker's wife who asked, ''Is it possible to see England from Canada ?''
I said, ''No.''
She said, ''But they look so close on the map.'' 

I would never forward this type of thing except for the joke value. Laughing is good for your health. But I would check it out first, remove all the names, and pass it on as what it is -- a funny fictional story. It makes me think of James Thurber's type of humor. I'm sure Walter Mitty met all kinds of crazy folks on his imaginary adventures including the guy below:

A New York lawmaker called and asked, ''Do airlines put your physical description on your bag so they know whose luggage belongs to whom?'' I said, 'No, why do you ask?'

He replied, ''Well, when I checked in with the airline, they put a tag on my luggage that said (FAT), and I'm overweight. I think that's very rude!''

After putting him on hold for a minute, while I looked into it. (I was dying laughing). I came back and explained the city code for Fresno, Ca. is (FAT - Fresno Air Terminal), and the airline was just putting a destination tag on his luggage..

Well, you get the idea. One lady on my e-mail list frequently sends things that make me tingle. Invariably when I check them out, they're false. It damages her credibility, but she seems oblivious to the fact even though I've mentioned it. On the other hand, I care enough about the truth (and my own reputation) that I only want to forward items that I can vouch for. If I can't source it, I don't send it. At least not as a serious item.

Oh, and if it's on YouTube in a foreign language with subtitles, you better find someone who speaks the language before accepting it at face value. Ditto for  photo-shopped pictures like Michelle Obama in the pinata dress. When I saw it, I immediately suspected it was phony. And it was.

I may be gullible when it comes to my husband's pranks (He enjoys taking me in, and I always say, "Really?" before I think it through), but gullible is not an adjective I'm looking for when I'm writing about serious topics.