Since the Ann Coulter plagiarism story is beginning to pick up steam, it'll be important to note the classic fact-free dodge that the citizens of Wingnuttia live for as it progresses.
It's not very complex, but anticipating it is the key to battling it.
It's the classic misdirection: You have an axe to grind, so lets talk about you instead of the story.
That's it. That's what they do. That's all they do. It's all they have. When the facts fail, bust out the People Magazine angle.
You'll see it with every expert who goes on a show to testify about Coulter's plagiarism. Rather than discuss the incontestible facts that her writings are clearly lifted from other authors' writings, rather than discuss what this means about her as a "best selling" author and as a pundit, they will talk about one thing and one thing only:
You.
How do you feel about Ann Coulter?
Do you like her?
Are you a "Bush hater"?
Why do you "hate Bush"?
Tell us about how much you hate Ann Coulter.
This is the dodge. It will be practiced over and over. Because real world facts, real world causality, real world reprocussions don't just upset these people, they bore these people. In their mind, all of politics is one big game of tug-o-war and it's far more fun to examine the personalities doing the tugging than the fairness of the game itself.
So lets all keep track of who practices the classic wingnut dodge on this story. Which, if I was a betting man, will be every pundit outside of Olberman on all three fraud news networks, including that shameful hack Nora O'Donnell.
And remember, the easiest way to beat this dodge is with one simple answer: What I think of Ann Coulter won't change the fact that these are clear examples of plagiarism. And she needs to be held accountabile by you.
Optional add-on:
You corrupt, fraudulent pretend-journalist hacks.