diff --git a/app/models/comment.rb b/app/models/comment.rb
index 747602ba7..0f3fec09a 100644
--- a/app/models/comment.rb
+++ b/app/models/comment.rb
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ class Comment < ActiveRecord::Base
     end
 
     def initialize(person, target, text)
-      @text = text
+      @text = text.strip		# remove leading and trailing whitespace now, otherwise it can cause signature issues
       super(person, target)
     end