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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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Granik warns of lockout

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  • Granik warns of lockout

    http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2081405

    NBA officials told to prepare for lockout

    By Chad Ford
    ESPN.com



    Deputy commissioner Russ Granik told members of the NBA's competition committee Monday to prepare for a lockout, four league sources, including two NBA general managers, have told ESPN.com.

    League spokesman Tim Frank was more circumspect when confirming Granik's remarks, saying Granik told the committee "to prepare in case of a lockout."

    Sources, some at the NBA's pre-draft camp in Chicago, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, are not optimistic that the league and the players' union can reach agreement on a new collective-bargaining agreement before the current contract expires June 30.

    The same sources say, however, that any work stoppage will not be a long one.

    "There's going to be a lockout," an NBA executive told Ford. "I don't think there's any way we get a deal done any time soon. We're not seeing eye to eye right now. The truth is that players don't really believe a lockout will hurt them in the summer. It won't be until there's a threat of losing that first paycheck that they'll get serious about negotiating again."

    While this could be no more than posturing by the NBA, sources on the players' side are quietly conceding the same thing.

    "I think they'll lock us out," a source with the NBA Players' Association said. "I think David [Stern] has always wanted to lock us out. I think it's a mistake. They act like they don't have anything to lose, but I think they do. The summer league, free agency, NBA players' playing in the qualifying tournament for the World Championships. The bottom line is that the players want to play. They [the players] offered to extend the current deal until a new one could be put into place. They [the owners] want this, and there's nothing we can do to stop them."

    A number of issues currently separate the sides. The biggest is the owners' insistence that guaranteed contracts be considerably shortened. Currently, players can sign for a maximum of six or seven years, depending upon whether the player is signing with a new team (six years) or his current team (seven years). The owners have been trying to get that rolled back to five years.

    Three other issues have become sticking points for the players: 1) the owners' proposal to reduce the amount of annual raises in a contract; 2) a "super luxury tax" that would more harshly penalize teams that spend more than a certain predetermined threshold; and 3) the proposed minimum age requirement of 20 years old.

    Despite the resignation that a lockout appears inevitable, sources also have expressed optimism that any work stoppage would not be protracted or actually threaten the 2005-06 season.

    "I think both sides will take the month of July off," a prominent agent said. "I think we'll head back to the table in August and have something hammered [out] by September. The NBA has no interest in losing revenue and fan support by canceling games. The players have no interest in losing their paychecks. The stakes just aren't high enough right now. But they will be in the fall."
    0
    No, they're just posturing
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    Yes, but it'll be resolved this summer
    0%
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    Yes, and it will last into the season
    0%
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    Come to the Dark Side -- There's cookies!

  • #2
    Re: Granik warns of lockout

    Couple questions.

    Does this mean we should expect more trades around draft night?

    What happens to the usual rules about Free Agents? Normally you can negotiate July 1, start signing July 15. If there's a lockout through July, does that mean if it's over say, August 3, that on that day they start negotiating with free agents, and can sign on the 18th? How would it work?

    Also, if this extends longer, into October, what happens to training camp and the preseason? If the lockout ended early November or later October, would there still be either of them? What happened in 1999?

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Granik warns of lockout

      Originally posted by vapacersfan
      I saw this earlier today.

      I expected this all along

      I dont expect to see any games missed, but I bet there is no summer league.

      I do think we will see a crap load of trades of draft night thought, since teams wont be able to trade during a lockout
      Wow, this was here when I submitted the thread. I guess the board posts the article while you're creating the poll.
      Come to the Dark Side -- There's cookies!

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Granik warns of lockout

        I think there will be a lockout of significant length, if only because that means the era of us getting season tickets will be framed by the two lockouts.

        I sure wish I could remember how January of '99 went. I was preoccupied by other matters when the lockout ended, so I don't remember how FA's were handled, all I know is it was pretty damn quick.
        Come to the Dark Side -- There's cookies!

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Granik warns of lockout

          Originally posted by vapacersfan
          Wait, what?............

          What poll?


          You posted at 8:52, I posted at 8:55. What are you talking about
          Scroll up.
          Come to the Dark Side -- There's cookies!

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Granik warns of lockout

            with a lockout our leadership will be really tested...its up to the players then to get together and make sure they re working out....should be a telling time for this team....

            hey JO....this is ur time, baby...

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Granik warns of lockout

              Originally posted by Hicks
              What happens to the usual rules about Free Agents? Normally you can negotiate July 1, start signing July 15. If there's a lockout through July, does that mean if it's over say, August 3, that on that day they start negotiating with free agents, and can sign on the 18th? How would it work?
              This will be negotiated in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, although it will be shortened next year due to the lockout.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Granik warns of lockout

                To many people saying their will be a lockout after the league and union said before the all star game they were close. I think they are posturing. I think both sides will give a little and reach a last minute agreement.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Granik warns of lockout

                  I think they'll be a lot of "selling" later 1st round draft picks if nothing is resolved at draft day.
                  "It's just unfortunate that we've been penalized so much this year and nothing has happened to the Pistons, the Palace or the city of Detroit," he said. "It's almost like it's always our fault. The league knows it. They should be ashamed of themselves to let the security be as lax as it is around here."

                  ----------------- Reggie Miller

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Granik warns of lockout

                    Originally posted by foretaz
                    with a lockout our leadership will be really tested...its up to the players then to get together and make sure they re working out....should be a telling time for this team....

                    hey JO....this is ur time, baby...
                    With Ron and JO I am absolutely not worried that this team will not be working out and organizing their own "trainingscamp" they ar eboth very hard working players in the off-season, and IMO neither will accept anything as an excuse for not practising together, more so; IF it happens then you will see a damn good definition of the team emerge, those who are and those who are not practising together, I think also that LB wouldn't mind finding out (he hinted at that earlier) and those that don't will simply have to find employement elsewhere or it will be found for them.

                    I actually think it is striking to think back at the lock out and to realize that we were the hot favorite that season as well, well as they say : l'histoire se repete
                    So Long And Thanks For All The Fish.

                    If you've done 6 impossible things today?
                    Then why not have Breakfast at Milliways!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Granik warns of lockout

                      Why did I vote the way I did? Because I'm a vindictive and want the whole league to suffer after what happened to us last year.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Granik warns of lockout

                        No regular season games will be missed, I am 99.99% sure of that. Reason is because the players and owners (unlike in 1998) are not that far apart. The differences can be compromised. In 1998 they had to bargain a whole new structure a whole new system.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Granik warns of lockout

                          If there is a lockout, i'm done with the NBA. Period. I'm tired of this bull****. I'm tired of players being a bunch of pansies. I'm tired of owners jacking up ticket prices (especially aftere a season we just had, then to jack up the prices is crazy). I don't like the style of play, hell, I don't like alot of the players on the Pacers. I'll find something better with my time, something I probably won't get pissed off about in May.
                          Sorry, I didn't know advertising was illegal here. Someone call the cops!

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Granik warns of lockout

                            Originally posted by TruWarier
                            If there is a lockout, i'm done with the NBA. Period. I'm tired of this bull****. I'm tired of players being a bunch of pansies. I'm tired of owners jacking up ticket prices (especially aftere a season we just had, then to jack up the prices is crazy). I don't like the style of play, hell, I don't like alot of the players on the Pacers. I'll find something better with my time, something I probably won't get pissed off about in May.

                            OK so if there is a lockout and it starts on July 1st but ends September 15th you'll really just stop watching

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Granik warns of lockout

                              In a nutshell...yes.
                              Sorry, I didn't know advertising was illegal here. Someone call the cops!

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