Joan Walsh makes an excellent point about the “Weinergate” idiocy — even if it turns out that Rep. Weiner did send that penis picture that has driven right wing blogs into a frothing frenzy, there’s one lesson that should not be learned: Lessons I won’t learn from Weinergate.

However, there is one lesson I won’t learn: I will never, ever take the word of Andrew Breitbart or anyone in his army of political sewer workers, over the word of someone who denies his claims, without independent proof. After Breitbart’s hit-job on Shirley Sherrod, as well as the selectively and deceptively edited tapes he used to bring down ACORN, his victims will always deserve the benefit of the doubt. Especially when, in this case, the target is not merely a politician, but a 21 year old female college student. Once Breitbart “revealed” the supposed Weiner photo, an army of drooling right-wing bloggers published the alleged recipient’s name, along with multiple photos, details about where she went to school and what she studied. Those details ricocheted around Twitter as Breitbots gleefully spread the lurid stories like spitballs. When the besieged young woman (who just happens to be African American) issued a statement Saturday night denying the Breitbart story, I believed her. I would do it again.