I'm in Pensacola Florida and one of the effects of the hurricane Ivan disaster has been huge crowds of people standing in line for hours for almost everything you can think of; fuel, food, ice, lumber, chainsaws, generators, etc. The list seems to go on for ever. I've noticed that in almost every line after the inevitable discussion of how much damage you sustained, how many trees are down in your yard and where is a gas station with fuel the discussion turns to Iraq and then the draft.
Sometimes it seems like if you get three people standing together you will soon have hundreds more forming a line behind the original three. It is an amazing phenomenon.
So they are feeling victimized by weather, depressed and fearful, and therefore more vulnerable to rumor.
Do you set them strait?