Here's how a writer on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer website decided that Courtney Love might front a reunited version of her late husband's band Nirvana this summer: First, a writer for the local alt-weekly received a random text message saying it might happen, then blogged about it. Then, the co-founder of indie record label Sub Pop, which was supposedly hosting the pioneering grunge band's reunion, posted a comment on the alt-weekly post saying "it's 100% true." A shocked music blogger blogged about the apparent confirmation, and a blogger at the Post-Intelligencer — a reader in the "Reader Blogs" section, mind you, not a newspaper staffer — followed with his own post. Since this post was on the Post-Intelligencer website, it had enough credibility to be forwarded to our tips email address. The only problem?

The whole thing is a joke. The Sub Pop cofounder also said in his "confirmation" comment that several other dead people would be playing alongside Love and Nirvana, but the dead people were sufficiently obscure that no one got the joke. Only after a follow up statement from Sub Pop asserted that Jimi Hendrix would join Nirvana on stage did everyone get that he was mocking the original rumor.

Lesson: Comments are evil and all comments sections should be closed forever, as the Times is learning. It's either that or read comments carefully, take them with a grain of salt and keep some perspective about them, especially when Courtney Love is involved.