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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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The Cooking and Libations Thread

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  • The Cooking and Libations Thread

    I'm inspired by the restaurant review thread here. Because, well, last night I had a fantastic meal ... at my house.

    So maybe some of you like to cook or want to learn how to cook. I'm a recent convert. In my former life, working full-time at a law firm, I worked 60 hours a week (minimum) and ate out all the time, I'm talking every day. After only a few short years, I packed on 40 pounds, and eventually freaked out from the stress. I soon wised up, quit my job (and the money that came with it), moved to California with my ex and went freelance.

    Here, I was faced with what became a life-altering situation. The restaurants were WAY too expensive (especially on a less-than-steady income). But within walking distance of my house, 4 days a week, there are farmer's markets that feature some of the most exotic produce I've ever seen. (little yellow tomatoes shaped like pears, herbs I had never even heard of, fruits that look like sea creatures).

    And there was all this cookware in the kitchen ...

    "**** it," I told myself with a quiver of fear in my voice, "how hard can it be?"

    Well, turns out it's not that hard. What I did not understand before starting out was that a cooking recipe is merely a guideline. It's the preliminary sketch before you paint the painting. As long as you stick with some general do's and dont's you really can't go wrong.

    Contrast that with baking cakes and pies and other bread-based goodies: baking is an exact science. One slight deviation, one change in a single variable can dramatically alter the end product. Baking is for the scientists, the "follow the rules" types. It's for the people that aced chemistry in High School, not the artists among us.

    Anyway, I've spent the last couple of years figuring out my way around the kitchen. Not too often, mind you, just a couple of nights a week. If you've read this far, you might still be wondering what the hell I had last night to inspire a new thread.

    Here's the list, followed by one recipe:

    FOR STARTERS:

    The World's Greatest Guacamole (my own recipe, to follow in a later post) This stuff makes angels sing and women throw their braziers at you.

    ON THE CHARCOAL GRILL:

    - 44 ounce London broil prepared with a more than ample coating of rock sea salt and fresh ground white pepper corns, cook 6 minutes a side, remove and rest for 5 minutes, slice on the bias. Feeds 4.
    - Summer squash halved into two disks, coat the cut side with olive oil, sprinkle dried basil, dried mint and red pepper flakes, place on the edge of the grill face down and lightly brown, turn half way to cook evenly (turn, don't flip).
    - Red corn on the cob, turn regularly. being from Indiana means that I'm a corn snob. You just can't get good Indiana sweet corn here, so I've come to appreciate the more exotic red variety.

    IN THE GLASS:

    - Don Julio Anejo Tequila - on the rocks with a squeeze of fresh tangerine. This was unbelievably good, and a perfect compliment to the southwest grill thing we had going on.
    “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: The Cooking and Libations Thread

    My go to meal has always been dolphin on the grill. No not that kind of dolphin, think mahi mahi, not Flipper. It's so simple to make an absolutely outstanding meal with it.

    1. spray a sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray
    2. lay your filet skin side down on the foil
    3. cut a lemon in half, squeeze the juice from one half over the filet, cut the other half into rounds and set aside
    4. sprinkle some sea salt, a tiny amount of fresh ground black pepper, and some fresh dill over the filet to taste
    5. place a small pat of butter on the filet (real stuff, I'll strangle you through the internet if you substitute margarine)
    6. put your lemon rounds, peel and all on top of the filet
    7. This is optional, but I also like to place 4 or 5 asparagus spears on top of the lemon rounds, make sure you peel the spears at the bottom
    8. fold the edges of the foil over and crimp them in the middle so it seals it up.
    9. cook on the grill approximately 10 minutes, the fish should flake when gently pushed with a fork

    When you take it off the grill, throw out the lemon rounds, and eat everything else. The asparagus takes on a bit of the citrus flavor and pairs very well with any kind of fish. The fish will peel right off of the skin. You shouldn't need sauce but we did put together a dill sauce once that was excellent with it. We usually have a salad to start this meal off and then eat the fish. You can also do this in the oven but you have to increase your cooking time.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

      Ah yes, mild white fish, lemon, butter, herbs and asparagus. Try it next time with strips of zuchini and yellow squash - or even strips of red and yellow pepper. Fantastic meal! The only way to mess that up is to seriously overcook it - but that's almost impossible - there's a huge window.

      Plus, you'll fill up and lose weight at the same time. Great food for healthy living.

      Those that can't do the butter due to cholesterol concerns can sub with olive oil. I agree - never use margarine! Never ever! I mean it!
      “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

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

        Fruity Pebbles a la Mode:

        You will need 1 box of Fruity Pebbles brand cereal (no generics allowed), a couple of cups of 2% milk, a large bowl, and a spoon.

        1. Open box of cereal and pour a considerable amount into a large bowl.

        2. Add 2% milk until the Pebbles nearly overfill your bowl. You are not allowed to substitute skim milk which sucks, or whole milk which has the consistency of Elmer's glue.

        3. Grab a spoon and enjoy! It's ok and recommended to drink the last portion of your serving directly from the bowl.





        I submit this recipe as I can't cook worth a chit.
        Last edited by Spicoli; 08-11-2008, 04:56 PM.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

          I do enjoy a good bowl of Fruity Pebbles.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

            i do love to cook...

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

              I love cooking, it's very relaxing. After sitting down all day it's nice to actually do something with your hands, you know, create something.

              Unfortunately because my job is too far from my house to go home for a lunchbreak and there isn't even a microwave where I work to heat stuff up I make the night before, I am forced to eat out alot. Eating out is nice but it does fatten you up I believe.

              This is all compounded by the fact that I live in a small apartment thus I must rely pretty heavily on a microwave and the George Foreman. But I will definately keep looking at these recipes, this thread is awesome. I love Farmer's Markets as well, there is one probably half a mile from my house and I use it to pick things up and also as some exercise.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                Originally posted by travmil View Post
                I do enjoy a good bowl of Fruity Pebbles.
                Yeah, unfortunately I burn mine every time.
                Originally posted by Natston;n3510291
                I want the people to know that they still have 2 out of the 3 T.J.s working for them, and that ain't bad...

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                  Originally posted by bellisimo View Post
                  i do love to cook...

                  Looks like a meat and tomato sauce of some kind ...

                  What did you make?
                  “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

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                    Originally posted by Los Angeles View Post
                    Looks like a meat and tomato sauce of some kind ...

                    What did you make?
                    its my so-called "specialty"...its chicken-mushoom saute...atleast that is what i call it

                    mixture of boneless chicken, paprika, tomato, mushroom with cumin, red pepper, basil and oregano...depending on the side dish...the thickness of the sauce varies

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                      Originally posted by bellisimo View Post
                      the thickness of the sauce varies
                      :thatswhatshesaid:

                      Looks good though...
                      Originally posted by Natston;n3510291
                      I want the people to know that they still have 2 out of the 3 T.J.s working for them, and that ain't bad...

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                        Gimme a black iron skillet, some flour (or sometimes corn meal), some milk, salt and pepper, Crisco, and butter and I'll teach y'all how to cook like a Hoosier from southern Indiana.

                        The above works for fish, chickin, squirrel, or rabbit. What more do ya need? Oh yeah. What we used to call squirrel gravy (milk gravy made with meat "drippins"), Mashed potatos, greenbeans, and unsweetened iced tea. Homemade strawberrie shortcake and ice cream for dessert.







                        BTW..........I'm serious.
                        Ever notice how friendly folks are at a shootin' range??.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                          Ya know what Geezer you might be the only person on the planet that I MIGHT agree to try that meal from with squirrel as the main course.


                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                            I've eaten squirrel, wild rabbit, antelope, venison, wild boar, wild turkey, caribou, ostrich, chocolate covered bee (yes, the insect), rattlesnake, bullfrog, hell, you shoot it and fry it up and and I'll try it at least once.

                            I was out with a friend west of Bloomington and we creamed a deer with his old Crown Victoria. Next thing you know, a old couple with three teeth between them came down a dirt road and only had one thing to ask: "You-uns aren't for sure gonna take it, are yuh?"

                            I looked to my friend: "You killed it, so I guess it's yours."

                            He looked to the couple: "Help yourselves."

                            Made their week for sure.
                            Last edited by Los Angeles; 08-11-2008, 10:46 PM.
                            “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

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: The Cooking and Libations Thread

                              This is a cool thread. I'm a total newb to cooking, so I'll just kind of observe.
                              You, Never? Did the Kenosha Kid?

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