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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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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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Hawks to open up Harrington talks

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  • #16
    Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

    At this point I'd rather be lottery bound than first round fodder.

    It's been a devastating pipe dream.

    Comment


    • #17
      Re: Harrington deal to Pacers dies

      I must say I am surprised. Al would have been a good addition and would have helped chemistry. The fans would have liked the move. I can only guess he was not worth the $.

      Comment


      • #18
        Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

        Originally posted by FrenchConnection View Post
        So we are really stuck holding the cards. We have a useless trade exception, a team full of really young small forwards and no second option. We are not going to be bad enough to be in the Oden hunt but not good enough to compete for a playoff spot. Also, we don't have a lot of young promissing players that give us hope for the future. It would be better to be a Hawks fan now. Well, I guess the return to the 1980's Pacers had to happen at some point. Everything comes full circle.
        Exactly what I was thinking, I hoped I never had to see what the older fans had to...looks like it's coming in 3 months....

        This really sucks.

        Granted not all the pain from the 80's will just reappear at the start of the season, but it isn't going to be pretty with the roster we have now.
        Super Bowl XLI Champions
        2000 Eastern Conference Champions




        Comment


        • #19
          Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

          Originally posted by FrenchConnection View Post
          So we are really stuck holding the cards. We have a useless trade exception, a team full of really young small forwards and no second option. We are not going to be bad enough to be in the Oden hunt but not good enough to compete for a playoff spot. Also, we don't have a lot of young promissing players that give us hope for the future. It would be better to be a Hawks fan now. Well, I guess the return to the 1980's Pacers had to happen at some point. Everything comes full circle.
          you forgot to add that the world ends next year.

          Oh and that the sky is falling

          If anybody tought that Al would be the answer to everything and then some, sorry, but there are some here who have been less then luke warm about Al coming, not seeing how he would fit in to begin with, except being a friend of JO.

          IF he is indeed not coming then we do not lose that much, it is ATL and Al who are losing, ATL now has to take on contraccts, on which all partners have to sign off ( ) and will not improve with that, Al is again going somewhere with even less influence on where he's going, unless he decides to sign for the MLE, but then again "the P's didn't want him bad enough".
          Seems to me he still has the grandeur he had when he left here, did anyone consider that the Simons' might have been hesitant to OK the deal because he already had a history here of making a trade demand, that maybe they do not like it when someone does what Al did?

          I guess now the value of the TE will really be explored.
          So Long And Thanks For All The Fish.

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

          Comment


          • #20
            Re: Harrington deal to Pacers dies

            So at the end of the day - we screwed this up. Let's call it what it is - we blew it because DW thinks he is smarter than everyone else. He thought we were the only option. We clearly aren't.

            And now Al even feels like he is not wanted! Is that Billy King's fault or TPTB?

            This team is the most unlikeable bunch and now - as the person you all hate wrote a month ago - we are lotto bound.

            And a word about the lottery - just because Cleveland got lucky and got LBJ, does NOT mean we will get Oden. They were the worst team and still only had something like a 20% chance of landing him. WSe will not be THAT bad to get that many ping pong balls... but bad enough to miss the playoffs.

            I am so fed up with TPTB - I have no faith that they have a plan at all.
            Heywoode says... work hard man.

            Comment


            • #21
              Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

              Originally posted by able View Post
              you forgot to add that the world ends next year.

              Oh and that the sky is falling
              Good, I was beginning to think I was the only one that didn't feel like this was all THAT bad.

              Donnie said there are backup plans for the TE if this didn't work, I'm very interested to see what they may be.

              Comment


              • #22
                Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

                Originally posted by Isaac@Section216 View Post
                Good, I was beginning to think I was the only one that didn't feel like this was all THAT bad.

                Donnie said there are backup plans for the TE if this didn't work, I'm very interested to see what they may be.
                Erick Strickland!



                (I kid.)
                Super Bowl XLI Champions
                2000 Eastern Conference Champions




                Comment


                • #23
                  Re: Harrington deal to Pacers dies

                  In all of my years watching sports, I cannot remember any pending trade being so magnified, and so positive that it was going to happen, and then it doesn't happen......this has been a strange summer!!! I'm sure it happens all the time behind closed doors, but why did this get so public?

                  Comment


                  • #24
                    Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

                    This just in! The deal is 99% done! Woo-woo!

                    Comment


                    • #25
                      Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

                      That's too bad. With the Knicks being a blasted wasteland, I was really looking forward to next January once people started to realize that Harrington isn't a good fit for this team.

                      Sometimes the best move is the one you don't make.
                      The poster formerly known as Rimfire

                      Comment


                      • #26
                        Re: Harrington deal to Pacers dies

                        Originally posted by Doug in OH View Post
                        So at the end of the day - we screwed this up. Let's call it what it is - we blew it because DW thinks he is smarter than everyone else. He thought we were the only option. We clearly aren't.

                        And now Al even feels like he is not wanted! Is that Billy King's fault or TPTB?

                        This team is the most unlikeable bunch and now - as the person you all hate wrote a month ago - we are lotto bound.

                        And a word about the lottery - just because Cleveland got lucky and got LBJ, does NOT mean we will get Oden. They were the worst team and still only had something like a 20% chance of landing him. WSe will not be THAT bad to get that many ping pong balls... but bad enough to miss the playoffs.

                        I am so fed up with TPTB - I have no faith that they have a plan at all.
                        I hate it when people regard next year's pick as sacred. Chances are, and they are DAMN good chances we aren't going to get someone on Al's level or any kind of steal.

                        I'm starting to get fed up with this, too. But, you won't see me just start watching other teams, I'll sink with this ship.
                        Super Bowl XLI Champions
                        2000 Eastern Conference Champions




                        Comment


                        • #27
                          Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

                          Jeesh the doom and gloomers are out in full force!

                          One} We are still in the middle of the Summer and not done dealing.

                          Two} We can do better than Al with the trade exception. That's why I didn't care if we signed him or not. Two better times to make trades is near the trade deadline and during next years draft.

                          Three} This will be a good team!

                          Comment


                          • #28
                            Re: Harrington deal to Pacers dies

                            Because we dragged *** as usual and DW over played his hand
                            Heywoode says... work hard man.

                            Comment


                            • #29
                              Re: Hawks to open up Harrington talks

                              Originally posted by FrenchConnection View Post
                              So we are really stuck holding the cards. We have a useless trade exception, a team full of really young small forwards and no second option. We are not going to be bad enough to be in the Oden hunt but not good enough to compete for a playoff spot. Also, we don't have a lot of young promissing players that give us hope for the future. It would be better to be a Hawks fan now. Well, I guess the return to the 1980's Pacers had to happen at some point. Everything comes full circle.

                              You are one (removed A).

                              Comment


                              • #30
                                Article: Three alternative Harrington deals

                                Three alternative Harrington deals

                                By SEKOU SMITH
                                The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
                                Published on: 08/18/06
                                In the pantheon of recent Hawks minidramas, and there have been many, none contains the mystery, intrigue and exhausting qualities of the still-yet-to-be-completed Al Harrington sign-and-trade soap opera.
                                A deal with the Indiana Pacers has been "imminent" for weeks, though it's undergone more face-lifts than Joan Rivers.

                                Agents have been fired and hired, and most of the central figures in this sideshow have chosen to remain silent on the details. Probably a wise choice considering the rampant speculation that goes on without their words being twisted and tangled in regard to whatever the latest status of the deal might be.
                                Not even last summer's organization-splitting Joe Johnson sign-and-trade deal captivated its audience the way the Harrington drama has. But even that deal beat this one to the finish line; Johnson officially became a member of the Hawks on Aug. 19.
                                And to think, all of this could have been avoided had Harrington been moved at the February trade deadline, as he desired, for far more than the Hawks will get in return if the deal with the Pacers is ever finalized. Under the terms, Harrington will be signed to a six-year, $57 million deal and then sent, along with John Edwards, to Indiana for a future first-round draft pick.
                                But what if that deal falls through? What if Harrington and his new agent, Arn Tellem, open the process back up entirely?
                                The Hawks must decide if they're going to rethink their position of not taking on contracts and come up with a scenario that makes sense for the long-term benefit of the franchise. Letting Harrington walk without getting anything in return is the only bad option for Atlanta.
                                Since the Hawks don't want lengthy contracts in return, why not consider these three new options?

                                1. Do a sign-and-trade with the Lakers for Chris Mihm, Aaron McKie, Brian Cook and a future draft pick.
                                Mihm is making $4.2 million this season, McKie $2.5 million and Cook just $1.5 million. All three players are in contract years, meaning the Hawks would have the option of resigning them if they fit in well with their young talent or let them move on at season's end. The draft pick is the cherry on top.
                                2. Do a sign-and-trade with the Nuggets for Joe Smith, a future first-round pick and $3 million cash.
                                Smith is another solid veteran power forward in a contract year. He'll make $6.8 million this season. The $3 million essentially cuts his salary in half, and the Hawks still get the draft pick they covet.
                                3. Do a sign-and-trade with the Celtics for Vin Baker, Brian Grant and either Al Jefferson or Kendrick Perkins.
                                Whichever of the young guys the Celtics would be willing to include is the player that makes this deal for the Hawks. Both Jefferson ($1.6 million) and Perkins ($1.6 million) are the ideal young big men to add to the Hawks' frontcourt rotation, as both can play center. The contracts of Baker ($5.3 million) and Grant ($1.8 million) look like burdens until you realize that both of their deals are up at the end of the season.
                                http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sp...bainsider.html

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