Have you ever read something on Facebook and immediately shared it so as to warn your friends and family of the newest danger, or make them aware of some new big, bad monster?

You're not helping anyone.

Don't worry, I've been guilty of it too, and we all need to stop.

Let's go back a week or two, when every dog owner in America was freaking out because a post went viral on Facebook that told them ice cubes will kill their pet.

A simple Google search (or phone call to your dog's vet) would have explained that excessive amounts of water or food of any kind can cause bloat in dogs, a potentially life-threatening condition, but a couple of ice cubes are actually helpful in keeping a dog cool on a hot summer day. It's the excessive part that is important.

Quite like in humans, too much water can kill -- as can a lack of common sense, but that's a whole other post.

Onward to the little three-year-old girl, recently viciously attacked by pitbulls, causing her to lose an eye and have her face covered in large scars. She was out for a meal with her grandmother at a local KFC, when she was kicked out of said KFC by management because the girl's scars were disrupting other customers. Outrageous!

Yes, outrageous indeed, more so because once it was investigated, it's become glaringly obvious that it never happened. The grandmother *allegedly* made it up -- and has since collected $135,000+ in donations. (She's still claiming it really happened.)

Sure, every now and again a legitimate story will come along that deserves to be shared, but before you do, just do a small bit of research. Take 5 minutes to make sure you aren't spreading the BS any further.

And while we're at it, those Facebook posts that claim you'll see something cool after you click share? Also BS, simply meant to garner attention for whoever created the post.

The basic lessons? Don't believe everything you read online, don't send money to anyone unless you're sure of where you're sending it, and don't share stuff online unless you have strong evidence that it's true!

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