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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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Why the Colts can reach the Super Bowl

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  • Why the Colts can reach the Super Bowl

    Why the Colts can reach the Super Bowl




    By Phil Richards
    phil.richards@indystar.com
    September 5, 2004


    History says no, but the Colts certainly are in the running. Playoff participants four of the past five years, they are a strong contender to make the 2004 season, their 21st in Indianapolis, their best, and to conclude it Feb. 6 in Super Bowl XXXIX at Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla.

    So what if, since the AFL/NFL merger in 1970, only two teams have lost the AFC Championship game and come back to win it the next year. The Colts can match what Oakland did in 1975-76 and Pittsburgh did in 1994-95. ESPN's Mike Golic and Pro Football Weekly magazine pick Indianapolis to come out of the AFC.

    Golic's ESPN counterpart, Sean Salisbury, is like a lot of observers. He has a hard time not picking the New England Patriots, but he likes the Colts.

    "If I was picking right now," Salisbury said, "it's going to come down to the Colts and the Patriots in the AFC. And the winner of the AFC is the Super Bowl champion."

    Six of the past 10 Super Bowl participants were 8-8 or worse the year before making the big game. The Colts are coming off a 12-4 season. They are experienced, unselfish, tough and determined. They are forewarned.

    "I think what happens is the team that loses, many times can get lulled into that trap," Colts coach Tony Dungy said. " 'Well, we're almost there. We only have to do that, so if we get this one player in free agency or we draft this one player or do this one thing, we're going to win.' "

    Dungy isn't lulled, and neither are his Colts. It's like the 41-0 playoff loss to the New York Jets that ended the 2002 season. They didn't let it define them. They wanted more. They came back. They improved.

    Dungy believes they will do so again, this time from a 24-14 AFC Championship game loss at New England in January that ended a season during which three of their five losses were to the Super Bowl participants, the Patriots and Carolina.

    The Colts have at least five important things going for them as Super Bowl contenders: 1. They have the league's best offense, a unit that can dominate. 2. They protect quarterback Peyton Manning. 3. Place-kicker Mike Vanderjagt is the league's best, and the special teams are on the rise. 4. The Colts' defense isn't dominant, and isn't likely to be, but it could achieve a level of sufficient reliability. 5. The combination of Dungy and team president Bill Polian is due.

    Need elaboration? Here's some:

    1. The Colts offense is dominant.

    It has ranked among the league's top four all but one of the past five years and it is a mature bunch that has grown as a group. Nine starters have played as a unit for at least two seasons; six have started together for four or more.

    Manning is the NFL's co-Most Valuable Player. At 28, he is coming off his finest season and entering the prime of his career. He was spectacular in the first and second rounds of the playoffs last season, and there is quality in quantity all around him.

    The wide receivers, one through three, Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne and Brandon Stokley, might be the league's best assemblage. Marcus Pollard and Dallas Clark rank with any pair of tight ends. Running backs Edgerrin James and Dominic Rhodes are an elite twosome, and James again looks like the back who led the NFL in rushing in 1999 and 2000.

    He averaged 4.9 yards a carry and 102.4 yards a game over the final seven games last season, including the playoffs.

    The line is seasoned, consistent, effective.

    Fullback Tom Lopienski won't play a lot of snaps or get a lot of attention, but he is a new short-yardage dimension: a 246-pound fullback who is an eager blocker and a capable pass catcher.

    It is the most complete offense the Colts have fielded during their Indianapolis era.

    "Across the board, we have a lot of weapons," Manning said. "Certainly we feel like whoever the ball goes to is capable of making a big play."

    2. The Colts keep their quarterback healthy.

    Manning is entering his seventh NFL season. He has missed one play because of injury, that against Miami in 2001, when Dolphins end Lorenzo Bromell hit Manning with a helmet-to-face blow that broke Manning's jaw.

    A franchise quarterback is an asset only if he plays. Manning has started 96 consecutive games, the longest streak to start a career in league history. The Colts have yielded 106 sacks over the past five years, fewer than any other NFL team.

    "The way we look at it," Colts center Jeff Saturday said, "is just keep him from getting hit and taking a lot of shots, and let him do his thing."

    Offensive schemes and the style and talent level of the quarterbacks executing them vary widely around the NFL, but there is one constant among Super Bowl teams. They keep their quarterbacks healthy.

    The starting quarterbacks of only three of the 20 teams that have played in the Super Bowl over the past 10 years have missed as many as five games.

    Tennessee's Steve McNair was inactive five of the first six games of the 1999 season with a back injury. Baltimore's Trent Dilfer didn't beat out Tony Banks until midseason in 2000. McNair started the last 10 games, Dilfer the final eight.

    And then there's the curious case of Kurt Warner. He came on for St. Louis after starter Trent Green was injured during the 1999 preseason. St. Louis won the Super Bowl. Warner won the NFL's MVP Award that year and in 2001.

    3. The Colts' place-kicker is the best and their special teams are improving.

    The Colts opened the 2003 regular season with Vanderjagt kicking a 45-yard field goal to beat Cleveland with 0:01 on the clock and closed it with him converting from 43 yards to beat Houston at the gun.

    The Colts went 5-1 in games decided by three points or fewer. In a league in which close games are the norm, a kicker who can handle pressure and conditions is an inestimable asset. Vanderjagt has converted his past 41 regular-season field goal attempts, an NFL record. He has made 139 of his past 155 tries and is 25-of-30 from 40 to 49 yards on the road, where eight of his nine game-winning kicks have come.

    Dungy made special teams a priority when he arrived two years ago. He preaches their importance, and he schedules it. Special teams is accorded an abundance of meeting and practice time.

    Hunter Smith has become a more versatile, effective punter. Brad Pyatt was leading the AFC in kickoff returns when he suffered a season-ending neck injury at Miami in November. He could be out several more weeks with a deep bruise to his right thigh, but, like his backup, Rhodes, he has the knack. Just as important, neither is a freelancer; they run where they are told, which is precisely what the Colts' kick and punt return schemes require.

    The Colts are replacing departed standbys Cliff Crosby, Jason Doering, Detron Smith and Marcus Washington with young talent, but their coverage, protection and return teams have improved in almost every category over the past two seasons.

    "I think athletically, we're a better team than we were a couple of years ago," said special teams coach Russ Purnell, who has infused his units with enthusiasm. "We've got some guys who are pretty athletic but are short on experience right now. We just need to get some on-the-job training."

    4. The Colts defense will be reliable, if unspectacular.

    Don't look for the Colts to dominate here. Don't look for them to become the 1985 Bears or the 2000 Ravens.

    With an offense that will score points and control the football, and special teams that should favorably influence field position, the Colts' defense doesn't need to.

    What it needs is cornerbacks Donald Strickland and Joseph Jefferson, who will miss about four weeks after arthroscopic knee surgery, to help upgrade their position. It needs David Thornton to suffice at strong-side linebacker and Cato June to prove serviceable on the weak side, where he takes over for Thornton.

    Merely cutting the crippling lapses in tackling and execution that have characterized the past two seasons would produce a reliable defense. It's the Colts' third season in the system. It's time.

    Yards per attempt and yards per game get a lot of attention, but points are the only commodity that truly matters. Of the 20 teams that have played in the Super Bowl over the past 10 years, only three have ranked lower than 10th in scoring defense.

    All lost. They were New England, 13th in 1996; Atlanta, tied for 24th in 1998; and Tennessee, 15th in 1999.

    The Colts ranked last in 2001, the year before Dungy and coordinator Ron Meeks arrived. They moved to seventh in 2002, but tumbled to 20th last year, at 21.0 points a game. Dungy wants to reduce the yield to 17 or fewer.

    "What that is, is one turnover, somewhere in the game, or one red-zone stop, where you hold them to a field goal instead of a touchdown," Dungy said. "So you're looking at either eight more stops in the red zone or eight more takeaways, and that's not hard to do."

    5. The combination of Bill Polian and Tony Dungy is due.

    Dungy has never taken a team to the Super Bowl. Polian has never won one. But both are among the league's best at their jobs, and theirs is a combination that works. Polian isn't interested in coaching the Colts. Dungy isn't interested in being a scout or an administrator.

    Winning is their shared priority, and in two seasons together, the Colts have progressed from 6-10 to 10-6 in 2002, then to 12-4 last year.

    Polian built the Buffalo teams that went to the Super Bowl after the 1990, 1991, 1992 and 1993 seasons, the latter after he had been fired. Had kicker Scott Norwood not missed from 47 yards with four seconds to play in Super Bowl XXV, Polian wouldn't still be looking for his first ring.

    Dungy has been to the doorstep twice, the AFC Championship game with the Colts last season and an 11-6 loss at St. Louis in the 1999 NFC title game.

    Both are devoted to keeping the offense strong, a commitment that consumes the bulk of the salary cap and places the preponderance of talent on that side of the ball.

    "You can always piece together a defense," Dungy has argued.

    This could be the year.
    I thought this was an interesting article.
    Super Bowl XLI Champions
    2000 Eastern Conference Champions




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