I try to keep a level head about this stuff and when I see things that sound fishy, I investigate myself. Snopes.com is usually a good place to start if you're looking to find out it something people are touting is based on fact or rumor.
Here's a perfect example:
snopes.com: Quotes from Sarah Palin
I, like many on here I assume, am a fiscal conservative and a social liberal.
I tend to lean conservative mainly because I don't prescribe to the idea of income redistribution. I believe in personal responsibility and that I can make wiser decisions about my healthcare and retirement than the government can.
As for Palin, like all the candidates, she has her pros and cons. She definitely did not perform well in the Couric or Gibson interviews - at the same time I lost a lot of respect for Gibson and his smug attitude and for Couric and her apparent desire to embarrass Palin. If the person you're interviewing doesn't answer a direct question when twice asked, what's the point of asking a third time?