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The Rules of Pacers Digest

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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.

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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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Page 2: Please Kneel Before Tom Brady

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  • Page 2: Please Kneel Before Tom Brady

    http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2...e=gallo/060109

    This column will start and end with the New England Patriots because it's the only respectful thing to do.


    As you might have heard, Tom Brady claims the Patriots don't get enough respect. And I wholeheartedly agree. I mean, come on -- all the magazine covers, TV commercials, awards and constant media love the team has received over the past four years have been woefully inadequate.


    That's why I want to share with you 12 simple steps I take each and every day to make sure I adequately show respect to Tom Brady and the Patriots. I hope you will incorporate them into your own daily schedule. (And it's 12 steps, of course, out of respect for Mr. Brady's uniform number.)


    Twelve Ways You Can Better Respect Tom Brady and the Patriots

    1. Genuflect whenever you say, read or hear the number 12. (That's four genuflections already this column. So do it. Do it! You don't want to disrespect Tom Brady, do you?! That's better.)



    All hail our hero, Tom Brady.
    2. Refer to the current year as "Year 47," not 2006, as history did not truly begin until the Patriots organization was founded in 1960.


    3. Take a life-size cardboard cutout of a New England Patriots player with you wherever you go. And be sure to include it in all of your conversations so it doesn't feel left out. It will speak back to you when you are worthy.


    4. Shave clean every day. It is disrespectful of you to think you can pull off the sexy stubble look as well as Tom Brady.


    5. After lovemaking, apologize to your partner for not being Tom Brady.


    6. Boycott network television until every commercial features at least one member of the Patriots.


    7. Petition the NFL to have all of Tom Brady's fumbles over his career stricken from the official league record book because of the tuck rule.


    8. Never call it a "butt chin." It's a cleft chin. And know that gazing deep into Tom Brady's reveals the secrets of life.


    9. Refuse to attend religious services until your local church/synagogue/mosque acknowledges the Patriots' playbook as a holy book on par with any other.


    10. Have all of Bridget Moynahan's movies playing on a continuous loop on every television in your home. But never ever gawk or leer at her in a lustful manner. Tom Brady knows and sees all, and you will pay for such a transgression.


    11. Every time you come across a baby goat, give it a long and passionate hug. Tom Brady would expect nothing less.


    12. (Genuflect.) And finally, just to be safe, begin every sentence -- no matter what it's about -- with: "No disrespect to the Patriots intended, but …"


    Headlines That Are Probably in Newspapers This Morning …

    Pittsburgh: "Steel Curtain defense holds Carson Palmer to just one completion"


    New York: "Distraught Tagliabue promises Giants 16 home games next season"


    Tampa: "Laissez-faire upbringing likely to blame for Chris Simms' loss-clinching interception"


    Seattle: "Seahawks shocked, overjoyed to escape first round"


    Indianapolis: "Manning's miscues prove deadly in playoff loss … but it's not our Manning this time!"


    Ten Things I Thought I Thought While Bathing in a Tub of Hot Coffee …

    1. What an absolutely terrible break for Carson Palmer to go down like that. And I mean for me personally, because just last week I had retained him for next season in my fantasy football keeper league. Yes, yes -- it was also kind of bad for the Bengals, too. But at least they have a backup quarterback. I have nothing. And that's simply not fair.


    2. After Bengals rookie receiver Chris Henry was told by the team's training staff Sunday that his injury would keep him out of the game, I wonder how long it took for him to ask someone: "So if we win and I end up being out for the rest of the season … uh, how do I ask this … does the league still test, you know, for drugs and stuff … like, for instance … marijuana, if you're on injured reserve? Not that it matters or anything. I'm just curious."


    3. I am intrigued by all of the Eli Manning apologists saying: "Hey, don't forget, his brother Peyton lost his first playoff game, too." As though that's somehow supposed to make the guy feel better. It would make him feel better, perhaps, if Peyton's disappointing playoff debut had been followed by years of postseason dominance. But, if I remember correctly, that hasn't exactly happened. In fact -- and again, I might not be recalling this correctly -- but I believe Peyton has developed a bit of a reputation for the exact opposite of postseason dominance.


    4. How many Giants players do you think were trying to persuade Lawrence Taylor to run from the sideline onto the field during the second half Sunday and take Eli out Theismann-style? I'll set the over-under at 12. (Genuflect.) And how much do you want to bet that Taylor came to the game only because he thought the Panthers' cheerleaders traveled with the team?


    5. Regardless, if you're a Giants fan and a Madden Football gamer, you might want to look into purchasing a 60-inch HD plasma screen if you have any hope of seeing Eli's passing cone when Madden '07 comes out.



    Look at the big guy go!
    6. Speaking of HD, that technology was made for moments such as the up-close, slow-motion replay of Jerome Bettis' 25-yard run down the right sideline in the fourth quarter yesterday. With regular TV, you could see his stomach fat jiggling. But in HD, you could actually see each fiber of his jersey screaming out and begging for mercy. It was stunning.


    7. You have to wonder whether Pittsburgh's game plan prep for the Colts will be hurt by assistants Russ Grimm and Ken Whisenhunt interviewing this week for some open head coaching jobs. And you also have to wonder why any teams are even considering the clean-shaven Whisenhunt when Grimm already has the requisite head coach porn 'stache.


    8. Fantastic new commercial for the NFL Network, the one about "getting your story straight" for the playoffs in which a fan in the preseason says: "Man, that Drew Rosenhaus … that guy knows how to manage his athletes." I can only hope that commercial aired while Terrell Owens and Rosenhaus were watching a game together this weekend. It would have been the greatest awkward silence of all time -- broken finally after a few minutes by Rosenhaus' screams from Owens beating him to death with his cell phone.


    9. In all seriousness, I don't actually think Tom Brady believes the Patriots aren't respected. He's not stupid. But he uses the "no respect" line all the time because it still -- somehow -- fires up his teammates. Which makes me wonder -- if the Patriots actually believe they aren't respected by the media, they might be the dumbest collection of human beings known to man. Good football players, yes. But quite lacking in the intelligence and awareness department. That said, I might even root for them to win another ring because I know how important shiny, sparkly things are to those with lower IQs.


    10. Just because I feel as though it has been a bit too long since I paid my respects: 12. (Genuflect.)


    Divisional Round Previews …
    Last week in this space, I not only predicted the winners of all four wild-card games correctly but nailed each of them against the spread. So, I thought I might as well try to luck out again.


    Washington at Seattle
    The Seahawks go up early, 17-3, and can extend their lead with a fourth-and-1 on the final play of the first half, but Shaun Alexander is stopped short of the goal line by a huge Sean Taylor loogie. Joe Gibbs' halftime decision to turn play-calling duties over to Coach Janky Spanky gets Washington's offense rolling again in the second half, but it's too little, too late: Seattle 24, Washington 20.


    New England at Denver
    Before kickoff, Tom Brady accuses God of disrespecting the Patriots by not adequately oxygenating the thin Denver air to the level New England has grown accustomed to. When the final gun sounds, the poor Patriots are disrespected yet again. By the scoreboard. Broncos 30, Patriots 20. (That's right, I'm sticking with the Patriots/disrespect stuff. Hey, it's no more lame than Tom Brady doing it.)


    Pittsburgh at Indianapolis
    On the Colts' second play from scrimmage, Steelers defensive lineman Kimo von Oelhoffen hits Peyton Manning flush across his left knee with a metal chair. The move backfires for Pittsburgh, however, as knocking Peyton Manning out of a playoff game is about the last thing an opponent should want to do. Bill Cowher's decision to go for an onside kick after every touchdown doesn't help Pittsburgh's cause either. Colts 30, Steelers 23.


    Carolina at Chicago
    In a contest between two evenly matched teams, the Bears have the advantage because their style is better suited to cold conditions. But more so because they can nestle deep within Kyle Orton's neck beard for warmth between series. Bears 17, Panthers 16.


    And finally, God bless the New England Patriots.


    DJ Gallo is a regular contributor to ESPN The Magazine, as well as the founder and sole writer of the award-winning sports satire site SportsPickle.com. He also contributes headlines to "The Onion."

  • #2
    Re: Page 2: Please Kneel Before Tom Brady

    Gallo is hilarious. I laughed 12 times. GENUFLECT!!!!!!!!!
    :thepacers

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