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The Rules of Pacers Digest

Hello everyone,

Whether your are a long standing forum member or whether you have just registered today, it's a good idea to read and review the rules below so that you have a very good idea of what to expect when you come to Pacers Digest.

A quick note to new members: Your posts will not immediately show up when you make them. An administrator has to approve at least your first post before the forum software will later upgrade your account to the status of a fully-registered member. This usually happens within a couple of hours or so after your post(s) is/are approved, so you may need to be a little patient at first.

Why do we do this? So that it's more difficult for spammers (be they human or robot) to post, and so users who are banned cannot immediately re-register and start dousing people with verbal flames.

Below are the rules of Pacers Digest. After you have read them, you will have a very good sense of where we are coming from, what we expect, what we don't want to see, and how we react to things.

Rule #1

Pacers Digest is intended to be a place to discuss basketball without having to deal with the kinds of behaviors or attitudes that distract people from sticking with the discussion of the topics at hand. These unwanted distractions can come in many forms, and admittedly it can sometimes be tricky to pin down each and every kind that can rear its ugly head, but we feel that the following examples and explanations cover at least a good portion of that ground and should at least give people a pretty good idea of the kinds of things we actively discourage:

"Anyone who __________ is a liar / a fool / an idiot / a blind homer / has their head buried in the sand / a blind hater / doesn't know basketball / doesn't watch the games"

"People with intelligence will agree with me when I say that __________"

"Only stupid people think / believe / do ___________"

"I can't wait to hear something from PosterX when he/she sees that **insert a given incident or current event that will have probably upset or disappointed PosterX here**"

"He/she is just delusional"

"This thread is stupid / worthless / embarrassing"

"I'm going to take a moment to point and / laugh at PosterX / GroupOfPeopleY who thought / believed *insert though/belief here*"

"Remember when PosterX said OldCommentY that no longer looks good? "

In general, if a comment goes from purely on topic to something 'ad hominem' (personal jabs, personal shots, attacks, flames, however you want to call it, towards a person, or a group of people, or a given city/state/country of people), those are most likely going to be found intolerable.

We also dissuade passive aggressive behavior. This can be various things, but common examples include statements that are basically meant to imply someone is either stupid or otherwise incapable of holding a rational conversation. This can include (but is not limited to) laughing at someone's conclusions rather than offering an honest rebuttal, asking people what game they were watching, or another common problem is Poster X will say "that player isn't that bad" and then Poster Y will say something akin to "LOL you think that player is good". We're not going to tolerate those kinds of comments out of respect for the community at large and for the sake of trying to just have an honest conversation.

Now, does the above cover absolutely every single kind of distraction that is unwanted? Probably not, but you should by now have a good idea of the general types of things we will be discouraging. The above examples are meant to give you a good feel for / idea of what we're looking for. If something new or different than the above happens to come along and results in the same problem (that being, any other attitude or behavior that ultimately distracts from actually just discussing the topic at hand, or that is otherwise disrespectful to other posters), we can and we will take action to curb this as well, so please don't take this to mean that if you managed to technically avoid saying something exactly like one of the above examples that you are then somehow off the hook.

That all having been said, our goal is to do so in a generally kind and respectful way, and that doesn't mean the moment we see something we don't like that somebody is going to be suspended or banned, either. It just means that at the very least we will probably say something about it, quite possibly snipping out the distracting parts of the post in question while leaving alone the parts that are actually just discussing the topics, and in the event of a repeating or excessive problem, then we will start issuing infractions to try to further discourage further repeat problems, and if it just never seems to improve, then finally suspensions or bans will come into play. We would prefer it never went that far, and most of the time for most of our posters, it won't ever have to.

A slip up every once and a while is pretty normal, but, again, when it becomes repetitive or excessive, something will be done. Something occasional is probably going to be let go (within reason), but when it starts to become habitual or otherwise a pattern, odds are very good that we will step in.

There's always a small minority that like to push people's buttons and/or test their own boundaries with regards to the administrators, and in the case of someone acting like that, please be aware that this is not a court of law, but a private website run by people who are simply trying to do the right thing as they see it. If we feel that you are a special case that needs to be dealt with in an exceptional way because your behavior isn't explicitly mirroring one of our above examples of what we generally discourage, we can and we will take atypical action to prevent this from continuing if you are not cooperative with us.

Also please be aware that you will not be given a pass simply by claiming that you were 'only joking,' because quite honestly, when someone really is just joking, for one thing most people tend to pick up on the joke, including the person or group that is the target of the joke, and for another thing, in the event where an honest joke gets taken seriously and it upsets or angers someone, the person who is truly 'only joking' will quite commonly go out of his / her way to apologize and will try to mend fences. People who are dishonest about their statements being 'jokes' do not do so, and in turn that becomes a clear sign of what is really going on. It's nothing new.

In any case, quite frankly, the overall quality and health of the entire forum's community is more important than any one troublesome user will ever be, regardless of exactly how a problem is exhibiting itself, and if it comes down to us having to make a choice between you versus the greater health and happiness of the entire community, the community of this forum will win every time.

Lastly, there are also some posters, who are generally great contributors and do not otherwise cause any problems, who sometimes feel it's their place to provoke or to otherwise 'mess with' that small minority of people described in the last paragraph, and while we possibly might understand why you might feel you WANT to do something like that, the truth is we can't actually tolerate that kind of behavior from you any more than we can tolerate the behavior from them. So if we feel that you are trying to provoke those other posters into doing or saying something that will get themselves into trouble, then we will start to view you as a problem as well, because of the same reason as before: The overall health of the forum comes first, and trying to stir the pot with someone like that doesn't help, it just makes it worse. Some will simply disagree with this philosophy, but if so, then so be it because ultimately we have to do what we think is best so long as it's up to us.

If you see a problem that we haven't addressed, the best and most appropriate course for a forum member to take here is to look over to the left of the post in question. See underneath that poster's name, avatar, and other info, down where there's a little triangle with an exclamation point (!) in it? Click that. That allows you to report the post to the admins so we can definitely notice it and give it a look to see what we feel we should do about it. Beyond that, obviously it's human nature sometimes to want to speak up to the poster in question who has bothered you, but we would ask that you try to refrain from doing so because quite often what happens is two or more posters all start going back and forth about the original offending post, and suddenly the entire thread is off topic or otherwise derailed. So while the urge to police it yourself is understandable, it's best to just report it to us and let us handle it. Thank you!

All of the above is going to be subject to a case by case basis, but generally and broadly speaking, this should give everyone a pretty good idea of how things will typically / most often be handled.

Rule #2

If the actions of an administrator inspire you to make a comment, criticism, or express a concern about it, there is a wrong place and a couple of right places to do so.

The wrong place is to do so in the original thread in which the administrator took action. For example, if a post gets an infraction, or a post gets deleted, or a comment within a larger post gets clipped out, in a thread discussing Paul George, the wrong thing to do is to distract from the discussion of Paul George by adding your off topic thoughts on what the administrator did.

The right places to do so are:

A) Start a thread about the specific incident you want to talk about on the Feedback board. This way you are able to express yourself in an area that doesn't throw another thread off topic, and this way others can add their two cents as well if they wish, and additionally if there's something that needs to be said by the administrators, that is where they will respond to it.

B) Send a private message to the administrators, and they can respond to you that way.

If this is done the wrong way, those comments will be deleted, and if it's a repeating problem then it may also receive an infraction as well.

Rule #3

If a poster is bothering you, and an administrator has not or will not deal with that poster to the extent that you would prefer, you have a powerful tool at your disposal, one that has recently been upgraded and is now better than ever: The ability to ignore a user.

When you ignore a user, you will unfortunately still see some hints of their existence (nothing we can do about that), however, it does the following key things:

A) Any post they make will be completely invisible as you scroll through a thread.

B) The new addition to this feature: If someone QUOTES a user you are ignoring, you do not have to read who it was, or what that poster said, unless you go out of your way to click on a link to find out who it is and what they said.

To utilize this feature, from any page on Pacers Digest, scroll to the top of the page, look to the top right where it says 'Settings' and click that. From the settings page, look to the left side of the page where it says 'My Settings', and look down from there until you see 'Edit Ignore List' and click that. From here, it will say 'Add a Member to Your List...' Beneath that, click in the text box to the right of 'User Name', type in or copy & paste the username of the poster you are ignoring, and once their name is in the box, look over to the far right and click the 'Okay' button. All done!

Rule #4

Regarding infractions, currently they carry a value of one point each, and that point will expire in 31 days. If at any point a poster is carrying three points at the same time, that poster will be suspended until the oldest of the three points expires.

Rule #5

When you share or paste content or articles from another website, you must include the URL/link back to where you found it, who wrote it, and what website it's from. Said content will be removed if this doesn't happen.

An example:

If I copy and paste an article from the Indianapolis Star website, I would post something like this:

http://www.linktothearticlegoeshere.com/article
Title of the Article
Author's Name
Indianapolis Star

Rule #6

We cannot tolerate illegal videos on Pacers Digest. This means do not share any links to them, do not mention any websites that host them or link to them, do not describe how to find them in any way, and do not ask about them. Posts doing anything of the sort will be removed, the offenders will be contacted privately, and if the problem becomes habitual, you will be suspended, and if it still persists, you will probably be banned.

The legal means of watching or listening to NBA games are NBA League Pass Broadband (for US, or for International; both cost money) and NBA Audio League Pass (which is free). Look for them on NBA.com.

Rule #7

Provocative statements in a signature, or as an avatar, or as the 'tagline' beneath a poster's username (where it says 'Member' or 'Administrator' by default, if it is not altered) are an unwanted distraction that will more than likely be removed on sight. There can be shades of gray to this, but in general this could be something political or religious that is likely going to provoke or upset people, or otherwise something that is mean-spirited at the expense of a poster, a group of people, or a population.

It may or may not go without saying, but this goes for threads and posts as well, particularly when it's not made on the off-topic board (Market Square).

We do make exceptions if we feel the content is both innocuous and unlikely to cause social problems on the forum (such as wishing someone a Merry Christmas or a Happy Easter), and we also also make exceptions if such topics come up with regards to a sports figure (such as the Lance Stephenson situation bringing up discussions of domestic abuse and the law, or when Jason Collins came out as gay and how that lead to some discussion about gay rights).

However, once the discussion seems to be more/mostly about the political issues instead of the sports figure or his specific situation, the thread is usually closed.

Rule #8

We prefer self-restraint and/or modesty when making jokes or off topic comments in a sports discussion thread. They can be fun, but sometimes they derail or distract from a topic, and we don't want to see that happen. If we feel it is a problem, we will either delete or move those posts from the thread.

Rule #9

Generally speaking, we try to be a "PG-13" rated board, and we don't want to see sexual content or similarly suggestive content. Vulgarity is a more muddled issue, though again we prefer things to lean more towards "PG-13" than "R". If we feel things have gone too far, we will step in.

Rule #10

We like small signatures, not big signatures. The bigger the signature, the more likely it is an annoying or distracting signature.

Rule #11

Do not advertise anything without talking about it with the administrators first. This includes advertising with your signature, with your avatar, through private messaging, and/or by making a thread or post.
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Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

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  • Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

    http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp.../bkn_nba_brawl

    Man Pleads No Contest in Pacers Brawl

    16 minutes ago

    By SARAH KARUSH, Associated Press Writer

    PONTIAC, Mich. - A fan charged with throwing a chair during one of the worst brawls in U.S. sports history pleaded no contest Tuesday to a felony assault count.

    Bryant Jackson was the only one of the 13 players and fans charged with a felony for their alleged role in the Nov. 19 melee during an Indiana Pacers-Detroit Pistons game at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

    Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Rae Lee Chabot indicated she would sentence Jackson to up to three months in jail, but he could get probation if he expresses remorse at the sentencing hearing May 3.

    Events at the Palace were triggered by a "mob mentality," the judge said.

    Assistant county prosecutor Paul Walton, however, said his office would request a sentence of one year in jail.

    "These are adults," he said. "They should be able to control themselves. If they can't, they should be in jail."

    Jackson and his attorney, Christopher McGrath, declined to comment after the hearing.

    Jackson, 37, is accused of dislodging a chair and heaving it over his head, hitting several people. He also is accused of throwing a drink at the Pacers as they left the court area.

    He pleaded no contest to one count of felony assault and one count of misdemeanor assault and battery. A no-contest plea is not an admission of guilt but is treated as such for sentencing purposes.

    Three other fans were sentenced to probation earlier this month.

    A motion hearing is scheduled for April 8 in the cases of the five Pacers charged in the brawl — Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal, Stephen Jackson, Anthony Johnson and David Harrison — and the other four fans.

    The brawl was sparked when a Detroit player shoved Artest after a hard foul. The two were separated, and Artest cooled off before being doused by a cup of beer thrown from the crowd. Artest rushed into the stands and began beating a man he thought had thrown the beer.

    As a result of the brawl, Artest was suspended for the rest of the season, Jackson received 30 games and O'Neal 25. O'Neal's suspension was later reduced to 15 games by an arbitrator and upheld in federal court. The NBA also announced new security rules.
    “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” - Winston Churchill

    “If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to serve as a horrible warning.” - Catherine Aird

  • #2
    Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

    Originally posted by Los Angeles
    Man Pleads No Contest in Pacers Brawl

    16 minutes ago

    By SARAH KARUSH, Associated Press Writer

    PONTIAC, Mich. - A fan charged with throwing a chair during one of the worst brawls in U.S. sports history pleaded no contest Tuesday to a felony assault count...


    ...A motion hearing is scheduled for April 8 in the cases of the five Pacers charged in the brawl — Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal, Stephen Jackson, Anthony Johnson and David Harrison — and the other four fans.

    The brawl was sparked when a Detroit player shoved Artest after a hard foul. The two were separated, and Artest cooled off before being doused by a cup of beer thrown from the crowd. Artest rushed into the stands and began beating a man he thought had thrown the beer...

    Given that the court preceedings are still underway (or just beginning) I'm pretty sure Ron allegedly beat the man he thought had thrown the beer. A/P writers: Crank out these articles without thinking twice. Gees.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

      So if he get's the 3 months he will do 45 days and if he get's the year he does 6 months , I thought this guy had a few priors for assault or something. Maybe it's just me but that seems kinda light on a sentence.
      Broadcasting Classic Rock Hits 24/7 SauceMaster Radio!!!!

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

        Originally posted by TheSauceMaster
        So if he get's the 3 months he will do 45 days and if he get's the year he does 6 months , I thought this guy had a few priors for assault or something. Maybe it's just me but that seems kinda light on a sentence.

        I agree. Priors (felony assuaults I think), and then this, I think would translate into something more severe. Heaving a chair like that could be construed as assault with a deadly weapon. Sure, a chair isn't a deadly weapon, but when you throw a folded metal chair at someone's head from 10 feet away I don't know what else you're going for. The guy obviously has some issues.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

          The real problem with that story is that the kid he charged and threw to the ground said that Ron DID NOT HIT HIM. Ron did not start beating on the kid he thought threw it. He grabbed him and asked him if he did it HE DID NOT HIT HIM. Again this is not me speaking that is what the kid said!!!!!!!

          The first person he hit WAS THE ACTUALL CUP THROWER but not untill after that as*hole hit Ron from behind.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

            Originally posted by Ragnar
            The real problem with that story is that the kid he charged and threw to the ground said that Ron DID NOT HIT HIM. Ron did not start beating on the kid he thought threw it. He grabbed him and asked him if he did it HE DID NOT HIT HIM. Again this is not me speaking that is what the kid said!!!!!!!

            The first person he hit WAS THE ACTUALL CUP THROWER but not untill after that as*hole hit Ron from behind.

            Yeah, it's pretty clear in all the video footage that's what happened, but everyone loves to tell the story the other way. I hate to spark this kind of debate again, but if you watch the video, you'll notice that the actual cup thrower hits Ron in the head a couple times. Not while Ron is engaged, but while Ron is being held by a couple people and is in the process of walking away.

            Just to cover my tracks with any Detroit fans who like to play devil's advocate: I do agree he should not have gone into the stands; that was the greatest error of all.

            I'm sure we remember all of our parents telling us as kids though (during our sibbling squabbles): "It takes two to tango"

            Take that as you will.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

              You lawyer types will have to fill me in because maybe I have this wrong.

              I thought pleading no contest meant you did something you didn't know was illegal when you did it, but now understand was against the law.

              How can anyone not think that throwing a chair into a crowd was illegal?
              The poster formerly known as Rimfire

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

                Originally posted by DisplacedKnick
                You lawyer types will have to fill me in because maybe I have this wrong.

                I thought pleading no contest meant you did something you didn't know was illegal when you did it, but now understand was against the law.

                How can anyone not think that throwing a chair into a crowd was illegal?

                Not a lawyer, but don't need to be with the internet:

                nolo contendere

                In law, a plea of "nolo contendere" means that the defendant does not admit the charge, but does not dispute it either. This is also called a plea of no contest or, more informally, a "nolo" plea. "Nolo contendere" is Latin and literally means "I do not wish to argue." In putting in such a plea, defendants agree that the court may find them guilty criminally without ever admitting to the act(s) they are charged with.

                Defendants could do this for a variety of reasons:

                * The issue may, for example, be a complex criminal one and defendants may thus not be certain whether in doing what they did, they have in fact committed the crime they are charged with. The defendants thus fully leaves it for the court to determine whether they have committed the crime in question and signals that they may accept the decision of the court for themselves. (This of course requires the defendants to have and maintain full faith in the court.)
                * A no contest plea can be entered by criminal defendants facing a realistic prospect of conviction, who do not wish to undergo a trial, and yet are not willing to admit to the offense charged. However, in the United States, the Alford plea is an alternative plea that can be made in this situation.
                * Specifically, defendants may wish to avoid admitting to a tort or any other type of wrongdoing alleged in the indictment or information against them with a view to possible later civil action.
                * Another advantage can be in saving on legal costs. This typically is a consideration when those costs exceed any possible penalties that may be levied on a guilty party.

                Recently a nolo plea seems to have moved increasingly into the direction of a guilty plea, almost barring its use for the first reason given above: Both in court room practice and especially in terms of outside media coverage, the possibility of pleading no contest for such (quite upstanding) reasons apparently is rarely ever considered in most places and cases.

                Generally, defendants pleading nolo contendere, will be found guilty of the offense by the court, as there rarely is (or can be, even) an effective defense without contesting the charge at hand. Furthermore, a nolo plea generally has the same effect as a plea or verdict of guilty for purposes of sentencing, and, depending upon the jurisdiction, may have the same effect as a conviction for the purposes of civil disabilities (such as loss of a driver's license or the right to own a firearm) or use as an aggravating factor if the defendants are later convicted of another offense.

                Defendants will not, however, be made to allocute to the charges. Also, this plea (unlike a guilty plea) may not be used against them to establish negligence per se, malice, or even that they actually did the acts which resulted in the conviction, in later civil proceedings related to the same set of facts as the criminal prosecution. It is not an admission of guilt, and provides one major advantage to defendants: It may not be used later as the basis for civil proceedings seeking monetary or other damages against defendants, as can a guilty plea.

                In some jurisdictions, such as the U.S. state of Texas, the right to appeal the results of a plea bargain taken from a plea of nolo contendere is highly restricted. In Texas, defendants who have entered a plea of nolo contendere may only appeal the judgment of the court if the appeal is based on written pretrial motions ruled upon by the court or with the trial judge's permission.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Brawl News: Chair Thrower Pleads "No Contest"

                  [QUOTE=Los Angeles]

                  Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Rae Lee Chabot indicated she would sentence Jackson to up to three months in jail, but he could get probation if he expresses remorse at the sentencing hearing May 3. [QUOTE]



                  Why not tell him how to get out of probation as well?
                  Just because you're offended, doesn't mean you're right.” ― Ricky Gervais.

                  Comment

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