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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"

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"Only stupid people think / believe / do ___________"

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"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.

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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.

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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

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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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Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

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  • Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

    November 12, 2008

    Pacers forgetting problems at point
    Ford steps in and makes an immediate difference

    By Mike Wells
    mike.wells@indystar.com

    Jamaal who?

    T.J. Ford has made Jamaal Tinsley an afterthought in less time than it took the Indiana Pacers to box up and ship Tinsley's belongings to him this summer.

    Ford's early play has given fans a reason to believe the team has solved its recent instability at point guard. The Pacers are 3-3 heading into tonight's game at New Jersey. Win, and they climb above .500 for the first time since late last December.

    "I don't want to jump the gun, but this guy has to be one of the top point guards in the East right now at this point," said Jarrett Jack, Ford's backup. "I don't see too many people playing better than him right now. The All-Star thing crept in my mind with him and how nice it would be for him because it's his third go-around.

    "People kind of write you off after your third go-around. He's been persistent with it and he's playing good basketball."

    Ford started his career with Milwaukee and was traded from Toronto to the Pacers in the offseason. Injuries were an issue, not skill.

    This season, he's been healthy. He also has beaten opponents with his scoring (17.0 points) and his drive-and-dish ability (6.0 assists per game). He has flirted with a triple-double in each of the past two games.

    After last season, coach Jim O'Brien said the Pacers had to have better point guard play. Ford and Jack have accepted that challenge.

    "It's so important to have toughness at the point guard spot," O'Brien said. "Mental toughness, physical toughness. I think Larry (Bird) being able to get both of those guys on our team has really changed our whole psyche because everything offensively and defensively starts at the point guard position."

    It would be easy for Ford to play with a chip on his shoulder after Toronto basically showed him the door and put its offense in Jose Calderon's hands.

    Ford doesn't see it that way, though. He's more concerned about continuing his trend of leading his team to the playoffs in his first season.

    "I've got the mentality and mindset of coming and trying to get the team back to the status it should be," Ford said. "I think it's a challenge and it allows me to be more focused and get the job done. (We) want to prove people wrong and show people that we are a good team. We have a lot of different weapons and we're going to play hard every night."

    Success aside, adjusting to O'Brien's offense hasn't been easy.

    O'Brien likes constant ball movement. Ford likes to constantly have the ball in his hands.

    Something had to give and the Pacers coach won out.

    "I told him in the first meeting we had that he has a tendency to sometimes over-dribble," O'Brien said. "I thought it would take him some time to understand that passing is what keys everything.

    "It doesn't mean we're taking the basketball out of his hands. We want him to penetrate, but we don't want him to penetrate into traffic. I think he's done an exceptional job."

    O'Brien wanted the ball in Ford's hands late in the game against Oklahoma City on Monday.

    With O'Brien calling a play -- a pick and roll -- for Ford every time down the court, Ford played a part in the Pacers' final 11 points. He finished with 24 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds in 40 minutes.

    "He wants to show he can run a basketball team and be that guy for however long he wants to be there," Jack said. "I think he's doing a great job at the present time."


    http://www.indystar.com/article/2008.../1088/SPORTS04
    a lot of people have been discussing the vibe around this team being better - the jack quote is definitely another example. ultimately, it's just refreshing to not have drama at PG so far this season.
    Last edited by avoidingtheclowns; 11-12-2008, 10:51 AM.
    This is the darkest timeline.

  • #2
    Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

    Nice read
    Proud owner of 'Dutch Pacers'

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

      I our new PG's

      PS atc, can you make the letters a bit smaller? They're like a tad too big.
      Word on the street is he doesn't want your money, he only wants to please your ears...
      Bum in Berlin on Myspace

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      • #4
        Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

        I like the way that TJ has performed so far...but I do get scared that when his shot is not falling he will still try to be the leader of the offense and turn into that game of JT against the Suns which we do not speak of...

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

          I really like both Ford and Jack as our PG's. In the 4th qtr of the Thunder game, both just seemed to turn it up another notch. I feel real comfortable with them at PG. I just wish I could feel as comfortable with the 5 & 4 positions. Thanx Mr. Bird for getting Ford and Jack!


          Who was it we traded to get Ford?

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

            Originally posted by avoidingtheclowns View Post
            "I told him in the first meeting we had that he has a tendency to sometimes over-dribble," O'Brien said. "I thought it would take him some time to understand that passing is what keys everything.
            This is what I love about O'Brien. He's excellent at getting players to notice their weaknesses and improve their games. We saw it at the end of last season with guys like Troy, Dun, Danny, and Diener. Now we're seeing it in the short time he's had with Ford. Overdribbling has been the biggest knock on Ford for his whole career. He comes to Indy and O'Brien sits him down and says, "You're not going to do this here." TJ responds and O'Brien rewards him by giving him the ball at the end of a close game and letting him do his thing.

            I don't think O'Brien's abrupt no-nonsense style appeals to everyone, but I think we've got a group of guys here who aren't primadonnas and can deal with it. I think that our 3 promising youngsters will really get a chance to improve with J'Ob.
            "A man with no belly has no appetite for life."

            - Salman Rushdie

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

              personally I think PG and C is the most impotant positions to fill first. I think we have the PG filled perfectly. We have a starting PG and a great backup PG. we've have many years of PG problem and I think we can count on Ford to bring the tempo we need and have Jack back him up
              "So, which one of you guys is going to come in second?" - Larry Bird before the 3 point contest. He won.


              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                Originally posted by mellifluous View Post
                This is what I love about O'Brien. He's excellent at getting players to notice their weaknesses and improve their games. We saw it at the end of last season with guys like Troy, Dun, Danny, and Diener. Now we're seeing it in the short time he's had with Ford. Overdribbling has been the biggest knock on Ford for his whole career. He comes to Indy and O'Brien sits him down and says, "You're not going to do this here." TJ responds and O'Brien rewards him by giving him the ball at the end of a close game and letting him do his thing.

                I don't think O'Brien's abrupt no-nonsense style appeals to everyone, but I think we've got a group of guys here who aren't primadonnas and can deal with it. I think that our 3 promising youngsters will really get a chance to improve with J'Ob.
                I agree completely. While I still wish he had a little more orthodox offense, I do like Obie as a coach in the classic sense of the word...as someone who teaches and develops. I'm really comfortable with him and the young guys...(which makes you really question how much of a train wreck either Ike, Shawne, or both were.)

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                  The only major fear from our PG position now is that both Ford and Jack have a tendency to be reckless with their bodies. Not that that's a necessarily a bad thing, but it does increase the probability of injury.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                    Originally posted by Shade View Post
                    The only major fear from our PG position now is that both Ford and Jack have a tendency to be reckless with their bodies. Not that that's a necessarily a bad thing, but it does increase the probability of injury.
                    Jack's a bit reckless, for sure, but he's only missed 6 games during his 3 years in the NBA. He may be the healthiest player we've got on the roster.

                    The really nice thing about our PG situation is that I think we can win games with a Jack/Diener combo if Ford goes down.
                    "A man with no belly has no appetite for life."

                    - Salman Rushdie

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                      Originally posted by mellifluous View Post
                      Jack's a bit reckless, for sure, but he's only missed 6 games during his 3 years in the NBA. He may be the healthiest player we've got on the roster.

                      The really nice thing about our PG situation is that I think we can win games with a Jack/Diener combo if Ford goes down.
                      Reckless to describe Jack? I would go with that. As of late, he has been a lot less fancy with the dribble, and just a solid player.

                      One thing I like about Jack is, someone mentioned that he had only missed a few games in his career, he gets knocked down and beat up, and he keeps going. Resilliancy.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                        Originally posted by Shade View Post
                        The only major fear from our PG position now is that both Ford and Jack have a tendency to be reckless with their bodies. Not that that's a necessarily a bad thing, but it does increase the probability of injury.

                        The Pacers have FOUR PG! They have one in Atlanta that is injury free and well rested just waiting to be called upon later in the season to carry the Pacers into the playoffs!

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                          How refreshing is it to read about a teammate talking up a player, and his all-star status/possibility, rather than the actual player talking about it?

                          I know the knock on TJ at both his previous stops were that his backups were better, and the team decided to go with them rather than Ford, but it really seems like Jack is okay being the 2nd string. Players recognizing and accepting their roles makes things run so much smoother.

                          Also, while I don't necessarily think JOB is the right coach for this team, philosophy speaking, he is exactly the right type of person to lead this team.
                          Just because you're offended, doesn't mean you're right.” ― Ricky Gervais.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                            Jamaal who?

                            T.J. Ford has made Jamaal Tinsley an afterthought in less time than it took
                            the Indiana Pacers to box up and ship Tinsley's belongings to him this summer.

                            Originally posted by Justin Tyme View Post
                            The Pacers have FOUR PG! They have
                            one in Atlanta that is injury free and well rested just waiting to be called
                            upon later in the season to carry the Pacers into the playoffs!
                            Who is right here?




                            Gotta LOVE IT!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Wells: Pacers forgetting problems at point (IndyStar)

                              Originally posted by half right
                              The Pacers have FOUR PG! They have one in Atlanta that is injury free and well rested just waiting to be called upon later in the season to blow up all the good things that the other PGs have established, with poor on-court attitude (sinu-pout-i-sitis) and off-court incidents
                              a few modifications seemed to be in order, that more realistically predicts the result of the return of JT.

                              Last edited by Slick Pinkham; 11-12-2008, 01:54 PM.
                              The poster "pacertom" since this forum began (and before!). I changed my name here to "Slick Pinkham" in honor of the imaginary player That Bobby "Slick" Leonard picked late in the 1971 ABA draft (true story!).

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