- Joined
- Jun 17, 2000
- Messages
- 19,728
- Reaction score
- 31,187
Welcome to our forum. This is a group with a lot of different people with differing opinions. Everyone is welcome to contribute and post here, and it's encouraged. However, please be courteous and just abide by the following:
FORUM BEHAVIOR GUIDELINES:
1) Avoid Insults In Making Your Point - Please use words other than "idiot", "moron", "stupid" to back up any posts you disagree with. This is a place to talk about the team and we have a variety of members who will all have varying amounts of knowledge. Many come to both discuss and learn about the team, so we're respectfully asking you to please do your best to avoid to insult those who may/may not know as much as you do. If you disagree, rather than insult someone, please take some time and explain why you disagree with a post. Suggestions to refute such posts would be:
Failure to adhere to the above could see you removed from the thread in question.
2) We don't hold grudges, there are no personal vendettas, etc. - If your post is deleted or you're removed from a thread, we have no long-term grudge/problem with you. We view those types of posts on a case-by-case basis and look less at the name and at just the content of the post. It's simple, we're on to the next post/thread and your misstep is forgotten over the same time it took to hit the delete button. So if you make a mistake, you're not being targeted nor are any of us "out to get you." We have a good group of mods who just want civil and productive football discussions, nothing more. However, if it becomes a habitual issue, that may be a different story.
3) What about if the poster is an idiot? Why would you let idiotic posts stay? - Because we're respectful of everyone's opinion, even if we agree with it or not. None of us are always right, and none of us are always wrong. So rather than go on and call someone I disagree with a name, we'll go on and say why we disagree. If the other person still strongly disagrees, then we just agree to disagree and move on. This is a community and at the end of the day, everyone - for the most part - has the same goal of seeing this team succeed. Everyone has done a great job of showing compassion at important times over the last year. Let's just try and make it more consistent.
4) Someone called me an idiot/moron/etc. and you/the mods didn't delete their post, so why was mine deleted? - The mods and I - like you - work for a living/have families/have household things we need to take care of. While we're on here throughout the day monitoring things, it's impossible to catch everything at every moment and some days are certainly tougher than others. If you see something that we need to know about, report it, PM us, etc. But fighting the battle until we hop on and deal with it won't be the way to go because you'll just be booted from the thread like the other person and face a penalty that could have been avoided if you had just ignored it and moved on. As Bill Belichick likes to say, "Don't be that guy/girl".
5) If you become a habitual offender, it could be a problem - Anyone who falls into this category after multiple post deletions, thread bans could be subject to a break from the forum. This goes for anyone, regardless of member duration, VIP supporter, etc. Again, let's just avoid it. If you see posts that annoy you, just add the user to ignore or scroll down to the next post. You're not required to bow to someone's way of thinking, nor are they required to agree with you. There are thousands of people here who will obviously not have the same opinions, so let's just be respectful and if you don't have anything nice to say, move on to the next post.
6) "DISLIKES/DISAGREES HOLD ZERO VALUE" - If you've ever watched "Who's Line is it Anyway?" Either of those two ratings are like the points on that show - they don't matter and have no effect on the other person's overall rating. If you disagree/dislike the person's post, you can hit that button without worrying about any repercussions. In fact, that type of behavior is encouraged and is much better than handling it in a disrespectful fashion.
7) If all else fails, use the ignore features - There are enough tools on this forum between user ignore, thread ignore, etc. to deal with people who might annoy you. We will still deal with people who violate the rules, remove threads that are irrelevant or off topic, penalize those who derail threads, etc. The goal is to have threads that despite the number of posts remain on topic. It's much more enjoyable to have threads with plenty of great thoughts/links/opinions than threads where you have to scroll past disagreements to get back to the point. If you insult another member or say something that you're likely aware will trigger an argument, you'll likely be removed from the thread. Keep in mind - this may not happen immediately due to moderator availability (again - we all work too). So if someone says something nasty and you retaliate, you may also be removed from the thread.
8) No one likes a consistently negative person - If all you do is complain, focus on the negative, constantly post critical threads on a certain player or offense/defense, etc., that could be a problem. That's not what we're looking for and we will remove you if it continues. It irritates people who are committed to the long-term success of this team and are willing to take an objective big picture look at things as opposed to focusing on a single setback, bad game, etc. I know the term "chicken littles" has been used, but it's really simple - don't be a Negative Nancy. If you're upset, we have a post-game thread to vent and get it out of your system. But take a deep breath and try and move on and don't try and spread negativity. I'm a pretty positive person and don't want to read it, and I know plenty of other people don't enjoy it either. So don't do it. I can go back to several seasons where this occurred and the team won a championship. Try and take a step back and enjoy the ride - even if it's a little bumpy. Football is supposed to be an escape from every day life and with the changes currently going on, it should definitely become even more interesting.
9) Absolutely NO Politics in the football forum - This one is pretty straightforward, and it's really simple. Mention politics inside the confines of the football forum, you'll likely find yourself removed from the thread. Football is an escape from the real world. We get enough of that nonsense on a day-to-day basis and the current thread inside the Pub is purely for updates about the Ukraine conflict, not for political debates about it. So other than that, help us out and keep it Pats or NFL, please.
IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER:
1) Don't be a Problem Poster - While we don't condone insults, those posters who are disruptive, post the same things over and over, are consistently involved with disagreements or altercations, you may find yourself removed from the forum. You need to understand that after a while if your name repeatedly comes up, you're not being picked on - it may be a case of, "It may be you" who is truly the issue. Instigating disagreements, baiting, etc. for the sake of creating issues will make me particularly unhappy. If someone puts together a well-written response to argue your point and you don't put forth the same effort and disrupt the thread, you'll be penalized and won't receive much consideration with any complaints.
2) If you see a controversial link/story/video, research it before you post it - This site is not here to spread misinformation. That's one of the biggest challenges facing all sites in this current climate and I don't wish to take part in it. If you find a source of inflammatory content that is shared here, it needs to have credible information to support it. If that isn't available, that content may be deleted. If it becomes a repeated issue, your ability to post may be suspended. With the new forum now up and running, this will be something that will be monitored by me moving forward.
3) Try not post solely links/videos/tweets in a thread - The media embed feature is available for those to share useful/helpful content with breaking news, informative information, or just a cool piece of content. We encourage everyone to share information, but please keep in mind, this is a discussion forum. If you post links, videos, tweets 99% of the time and don't contribute anything beyond that, it could put your posting abilities in jeopardy. There's a happy medium, so try and find a good balance. And again, as mentioned above, please make sure the content is accurate and can be backed up by reputable sources. At the same time, timing and context is everything, which means if that's all you're comfortable posting, as long as you can find a comfortable balance that helps compliment a thread, you're fine. Just be mindful of the frequency and content.
Please note - I am the only one who can ban an individual and I prefer not to do so. But my decisions are always made based on "what's best for the board", so if you end up on my radar, I'll PM you and ask you once to please knock it off. There won't be a second PM if it continues and if I hear about you doing the same thing again and I review it and you're a repeat offender, you'll be removed without notice and any further requests for reinstatement will be ignored. This is also a privately owned board and there are no rights/laws/etc. that you can fall back on to get back in. It's like being in someone's house and being booted out, you're not allowed to go back in if they don't want you there. So these rules work both ways, and I need everyone to be aware of that.
I appreciate everyone's cooperation and feel free to PM me with any concerns.
FORUM BEHAVIOR GUIDELINES:
1) Avoid Insults In Making Your Point - Please use words other than "idiot", "moron", "stupid" to back up any posts you disagree with. This is a place to talk about the team and we have a variety of members who will all have varying amounts of knowledge. Many come to both discuss and learn about the team, so we're respectfully asking you to please do your best to avoid to insult those who may/may not know as much as you do. If you disagree, rather than insult someone, please take some time and explain why you disagree with a post. Suggestions to refute such posts would be:
- Observations, data or links that back up your argument of why you disagree
- Other examples, threads, links of people who agree with your point of view
- Not using responses that attack someone's intelligence, character, fan allegiance, etc.
Failure to adhere to the above could see you removed from the thread in question.
2) We don't hold grudges, there are no personal vendettas, etc. - If your post is deleted or you're removed from a thread, we have no long-term grudge/problem with you. We view those types of posts on a case-by-case basis and look less at the name and at just the content of the post. It's simple, we're on to the next post/thread and your misstep is forgotten over the same time it took to hit the delete button. So if you make a mistake, you're not being targeted nor are any of us "out to get you." We have a good group of mods who just want civil and productive football discussions, nothing more. However, if it becomes a habitual issue, that may be a different story.
3) What about if the poster is an idiot? Why would you let idiotic posts stay? - Because we're respectful of everyone's opinion, even if we agree with it or not. None of us are always right, and none of us are always wrong. So rather than go on and call someone I disagree with a name, we'll go on and say why we disagree. If the other person still strongly disagrees, then we just agree to disagree and move on. This is a community and at the end of the day, everyone - for the most part - has the same goal of seeing this team succeed. Everyone has done a great job of showing compassion at important times over the last year. Let's just try and make it more consistent.
4) Someone called me an idiot/moron/etc. and you/the mods didn't delete their post, so why was mine deleted? - The mods and I - like you - work for a living/have families/have household things we need to take care of. While we're on here throughout the day monitoring things, it's impossible to catch everything at every moment and some days are certainly tougher than others. If you see something that we need to know about, report it, PM us, etc. But fighting the battle until we hop on and deal with it won't be the way to go because you'll just be booted from the thread like the other person and face a penalty that could have been avoided if you had just ignored it and moved on. As Bill Belichick likes to say, "Don't be that guy/girl".
5) If you become a habitual offender, it could be a problem - Anyone who falls into this category after multiple post deletions, thread bans could be subject to a break from the forum. This goes for anyone, regardless of member duration, VIP supporter, etc. Again, let's just avoid it. If you see posts that annoy you, just add the user to ignore or scroll down to the next post. You're not required to bow to someone's way of thinking, nor are they required to agree with you. There are thousands of people here who will obviously not have the same opinions, so let's just be respectful and if you don't have anything nice to say, move on to the next post.
6) "DISLIKES/DISAGREES HOLD ZERO VALUE" - If you've ever watched "Who's Line is it Anyway?" Either of those two ratings are like the points on that show - they don't matter and have no effect on the other person's overall rating. If you disagree/dislike the person's post, you can hit that button without worrying about any repercussions. In fact, that type of behavior is encouraged and is much better than handling it in a disrespectful fashion.
7) If all else fails, use the ignore features - There are enough tools on this forum between user ignore, thread ignore, etc. to deal with people who might annoy you. We will still deal with people who violate the rules, remove threads that are irrelevant or off topic, penalize those who derail threads, etc. The goal is to have threads that despite the number of posts remain on topic. It's much more enjoyable to have threads with plenty of great thoughts/links/opinions than threads where you have to scroll past disagreements to get back to the point. If you insult another member or say something that you're likely aware will trigger an argument, you'll likely be removed from the thread. Keep in mind - this may not happen immediately due to moderator availability (again - we all work too). So if someone says something nasty and you retaliate, you may also be removed from the thread.
8) No one likes a consistently negative person - If all you do is complain, focus on the negative, constantly post critical threads on a certain player or offense/defense, etc., that could be a problem. That's not what we're looking for and we will remove you if it continues. It irritates people who are committed to the long-term success of this team and are willing to take an objective big picture look at things as opposed to focusing on a single setback, bad game, etc. I know the term "chicken littles" has been used, but it's really simple - don't be a Negative Nancy. If you're upset, we have a post-game thread to vent and get it out of your system. But take a deep breath and try and move on and don't try and spread negativity. I'm a pretty positive person and don't want to read it, and I know plenty of other people don't enjoy it either. So don't do it. I can go back to several seasons where this occurred and the team won a championship. Try and take a step back and enjoy the ride - even if it's a little bumpy. Football is supposed to be an escape from every day life and with the changes currently going on, it should definitely become even more interesting.
9) Absolutely NO Politics in the football forum - This one is pretty straightforward, and it's really simple. Mention politics inside the confines of the football forum, you'll likely find yourself removed from the thread. Football is an escape from the real world. We get enough of that nonsense on a day-to-day basis and the current thread inside the Pub is purely for updates about the Ukraine conflict, not for political debates about it. So other than that, help us out and keep it Pats or NFL, please.
IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER:
1) Don't be a Problem Poster - While we don't condone insults, those posters who are disruptive, post the same things over and over, are consistently involved with disagreements or altercations, you may find yourself removed from the forum. You need to understand that after a while if your name repeatedly comes up, you're not being picked on - it may be a case of, "It may be you" who is truly the issue. Instigating disagreements, baiting, etc. for the sake of creating issues will make me particularly unhappy. If someone puts together a well-written response to argue your point and you don't put forth the same effort and disrupt the thread, you'll be penalized and won't receive much consideration with any complaints.
2) If you see a controversial link/story/video, research it before you post it - This site is not here to spread misinformation. That's one of the biggest challenges facing all sites in this current climate and I don't wish to take part in it. If you find a source of inflammatory content that is shared here, it needs to have credible information to support it. If that isn't available, that content may be deleted. If it becomes a repeated issue, your ability to post may be suspended. With the new forum now up and running, this will be something that will be monitored by me moving forward.
3) Try not post solely links/videos/tweets in a thread - The media embed feature is available for those to share useful/helpful content with breaking news, informative information, or just a cool piece of content. We encourage everyone to share information, but please keep in mind, this is a discussion forum. If you post links, videos, tweets 99% of the time and don't contribute anything beyond that, it could put your posting abilities in jeopardy. There's a happy medium, so try and find a good balance. And again, as mentioned above, please make sure the content is accurate and can be backed up by reputable sources. At the same time, timing and context is everything, which means if that's all you're comfortable posting, as long as you can find a comfortable balance that helps compliment a thread, you're fine. Just be mindful of the frequency and content.
Please note - I am the only one who can ban an individual and I prefer not to do so. But my decisions are always made based on "what's best for the board", so if you end up on my radar, I'll PM you and ask you once to please knock it off. There won't be a second PM if it continues and if I hear about you doing the same thing again and I review it and you're a repeat offender, you'll be removed without notice and any further requests for reinstatement will be ignored. This is also a privately owned board and there are no rights/laws/etc. that you can fall back on to get back in. It's like being in someone's house and being booted out, you're not allowed to go back in if they don't want you there. So these rules work both ways, and I need everyone to be aware of that.
I appreciate everyone's cooperation and feel free to PM me with any concerns.
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