And right there is the problem. "I saw it, copied it and passed it on as fact without subjecting it to any critical thought, independent research or fact checking".
I got a fantastic download from one of the infectious disease specialists at the hospital on Friday (I get updates once a week as to the preparedness of the State, Hospital, Staff, Ward and potential effects on an immuno-compromised child), and I'd love to use that information to correct some of the obvious misinformation in this and other threads, but if I do it, it's second hand information by the time I put it on the page and third hand by the time you read it.
Add into that mis-interpretation / communication because I'm not the expert, compounded by interpretation at the readers end and the inevitable chinese whispers, out of context cut and paste and general twisting of out of context quotes, and suddenly the cure looks worse than the disease.
Having said that, with the background I've collected over the last month and the specific information I received on Friday, I could probably make myself sound important/informed and might even have that smug factor believing I was performing a community service, but in reality I'd probably be at the same level as any other Muppet who cuts and pastes "facts" without any background or checking. So I won't.
If people acknowledged they were not the experts, and ceased passing on half-baked information that is either obviously wrong, cleverly written to appear plausible, genuinely written by uninformed people or badly communicated fifth hand information from genuine experts there'd be a lot less fluff and more relevant and factual information. That doesn't sell papers or make people feel important though.
Actually, it's not unlike mechanical advice on AULRO. "My rear wheel has a squeak when I turn right with the suspension lowered" :
-  "Have you tried cleaning the MAP sensor?"
- "You need to do a hard reset"
- "Mine did that and it turned out to be a mouse in the glove box"
- "My mate had a car that squeaked once. It was a Ford. Don't buy Fords, they are **** because they squeak".
- "Your mate was a muppet, Fords rule ok!"
- "Dyslexia rules KO"
- "Listen muppet, if you don't have any advice about the squeak, get out of my thread".
- "If it only squeaks with the suspension lowered, don't lower it".
- "My wife has the Corona virus and she squeaks when she breathes".
- "Tell her to stop breathing".
- "Does she squeak when her suspension is lowered"
- "Ok you can stop now. the squeak was a loose wheel nut"
- "I bet your mechanic used a rattle gun and not a torque wrench"
and so it goes .....
Rant over.