Everything old is new again on the Internet, at least when it comes to Mariah Carey. A years-old quote attributed to the high-maintenance chanteuse resurfaced this week and quickly made its way onto scores of online outposts.

"I'd rather be on stage with a pig," reads the cutting remark ostensibly uttered by Carey. "A duet with Jennifer Lopez and me just ain't going to happen."

The line in question has it all -- cattiness (against a hugely pregnant peer, no less), arrogance, a farm animal reference. It also has something else, namely, a history, with the rude remark first popping up on the Web back in January 2002 courtesy of a British tabloid.

And while there's no doubt Mariah has her quirks, from referring to her fans as "lambs" to a preference for being photographed from a particular side, unprovoked attacks apparently aren't among them, and she insists to People that this is a case of words being put into her mouth.

The porcine petulance is "a complete untruth," the top-heavy belter pooh-poohs to the mag. "This is just some Internet gossip and it's pathetic that people actually entertain the thought that this could be real."

She then channels her inner Gloria Steinem and proclaims, "This is another sad example of two strong women being pit against each other."

(Of course, Mariah may be practicing some selective amnesia when it comes to J.Lo. Shortly before her meltdown in 2001, Carey swiped at Lopez during a chat with Talk magazine, dissing, among other things, her claim of getting eight hours sleep a night: "If I had the luxury of not actually having to sing my own songs, I'd do that too.")

This isn't the first time Mariah has been the victim of an unflattering fabrication. Back in 1996, a spoof interview with the star was picked up as fact, an unfortunate situation as the fictitious tête-à-tête included the following exchange:

Fake Interviewer: "You've got it all, girl. Money, cars, a good man, and an incredible career. Is there anything you haven't achieved?"

Fake Mariah: "God, there so much I still want to do. Sometimes I feel like all this money is just holding me back from what's really important, the children. When I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the world, I can't help but cry. I mean, I'd love to be skinny like that, but not with all those flies and death and stuff."

The "flies and death" reference became the stuff of urban legend, which you can read more about here.

Next: J.Lo Talks Privacy, 'Bubble Gut'