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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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Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

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  • Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

    Dallas Cowboy Josh Brent
    Arrested for
    Manslaughter


    Breaking News

    Dallas Cowboys defensive lineman Josh Brent was arrested in Texas early this morning on charges of intoxication manslaughter involving a car accident in which a teammate died ... TMZ has learned.

    According to WFAA in Dallas, Irving PD says Brent and a member of the team's practice squad, Jerry Brown, were involved in a single car accident around 2:30 AM local time and that Brown died as a result.

    The Dallas Morning News is reporting that police say Brent was driving at a high rate of speed when his car "hit the outside curb," flipped over and came to rest in the middle of the road. Brent was responsive at the scene, but Brown was not. He was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

    Brent was given a field sobriety test, which he failed, and was hit with a second degree felony charged. He was arrested by Irving PD and booked at 4:14 AM and is being held without bail.

    Brent pled guilty to a misdemeanor DUI charge while in college.

    The incident comes just one week after Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher killed his girlfriend and then himself.

    Story developing ...
    Read more: http://www.tmz.com#ixzz2EUfHnyIM

  • #2
    Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

    A very sad situation

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

      It sadly reminds me of what happened with Jeff Alm and his friend who wasn't a teammate though but Jeff accidentally killed himself after watching his friend die he was also 25. He was intoxicated as well.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

        Jerry Jones: We are deeply saddened by the passing of Jerry Brown
        Posted by Michael David Smith on December 8, 2012, 3:34 PM EST

        AP
        Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has released a statement confirming the death of Jerry Brown, a linebacker on the team’s practice squad.

        “We are deeply saddened by the news of this accident and the passing of Jerry Brown,” Jones said. “Our hearts and prayers and deepest sympathies are with the members of Jerry’s family and all of those who knew him and loved him.”

        Brown, a 25-year-old who played in one regular season game for the Colts this season before landing on the Cowboys’ practice squad, played his college football at Illinois, where he was a teammate of Cowboys nose tackle Josh Brent, who was driving the car in which Brown died this morning.

        Brent was booked into the Irving City Jail on one count of intoxication manslaughter this morning, shortly after Brown died.

        The Cowboys’ team plane is currently en route to Cincinnati, where the team’s game against the Bengals is expected to go on as scheduled.
        http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...brown/related/

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

          Apparently he was going to be father this is even more tragic

          http://blacksportsonline.com/home/20...t-life-behind/

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

            Lot of stupidity from both men in this case but a sad story

            RIP Jerry
            Counting down the days untill DJ Augustin's contract expires.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

              Stories like this are so frustrating to hear about. These guys have it made and throw it all away by being stupid and careless.

              Two lives are effectively over (along with several others forever changed) for no good reason at all. Condolences to all the families and friends involved.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                This type of news would be huge if it was the NBA.
                @WhatTheFFacts: Studies show that sarcasm enhances the ability of the human mind to solve complex problems!

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                  http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...evel-was-0-18/

                  Report: Josh Brent’s blood alcohol level was 0.18

                  Posted by Michael David Smith on December 13, 2012, 8:37 AM EST

                  AP
                  Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent had a blood alcohol level of more than double the legal limit when he crashed his car on Saturday, killing his teammate Jerry Brown.

                  The Dallas Morning News reports that Brent’s blood alcohol level was 0.18. The legal limit is 0.08.

                  According to BloodAlcoholCalculator.org, a person Brent’s weight, 320 pounds, would reach a 0.18 blood alcohol level after drinking 21 shots over a five-hour period.

                  Police say Brent failed field sobriety tests after the crash. Because Brown died, the law allowed Brent’s blood to be drawn against his will.

                  Brent faces a charge of intoxication manslaughter in Brown’s death. Brent has been released from jail on $500,000 bail, which his attorney, George Milner, described as excessive.

                  “It’s outrageous. It’s offensive,” Milner said.

                  Milner was talking about his client’s bail amount, but many would use the same words to describe a person driving after 21 drinks.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                    http://espn.go.com/dallas/nfl/story/...ng-jerry-brown

                    Cowboys' Josh Brent indicted

                    DALLAS -- A grand jury in Texas has formally indicted Dallas Cowboys nose tackle Josh Brent on one count of intoxication manslaughter.

                    Brent
                    Brent is charged in connection with a Dec. 8 crash that killed his friend and Cowboys practice squad member Jerry Brown. Brent is out of jail on $100,000 bond.

                    Dallas County District Attorney's Office spokeswoman Debbie Denmon says the indictment was returned Wednesday.

                    Police in the Dallas suburb of Irving say Brent was speeding when his vehicle struck a curb and flipped. Brown was pronounced dead at an area hospital.

                    Intoxication manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Brent could be eligible for probation.

                    Denmon says no court dates have been scheduled.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                      This just gets sadder...

                      http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/2013...of-death.html/

                      Dallas Cowboys practice squad player Jerry Brown Jr.’s blood alcohol level was below the legal driving limit around the time he was killed last month in an Irving car wreck in which his best friend and teammate was driving, according to Brown’s autopsy report.

                      The report says Brown’s blood alcohol content was 0.079. The legal limit in Texas is 0.08. (Clarification: The reading directly from Brown’s blood was actually even lower, at 0.056. The 0.079 reading was from fluid in his eye, which is commonly taken during Dallas autopsies and is normally higher in blood alcohol content than the blood sample.)

                      Josh Brent was driving the car at the time of the Dec. 8 wreck and his blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit. He was indicted last month on a charge of intoxication manslaughter in the death.

                      The autopsy found that Brown died of blunt force injuries of the head and neck. His death was ruled an accident.

                      Neither man was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash, according to a police report.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                        http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...-manslaughter/

                        Josh Brent convicted of intoxication manslaughter


                        Former Cowboys defensive lineman Josh Brent has faced a jury regarding the charge that he drove drunk the night that his friend and former teammate, Jerry Brown, died in an automobile accident. After two days of deliberations, the jury found Brent guilty.

                        Via multiple reports, Brent was convicted of intoxication manslaughter arising from the December 2012 accident. Brent’s blood-alcohol concentration was measured at 0.18 percent; at trial, a toxicologist testified that, based on Brent’s size, he had 17 drinks.

                        Brent now faces up to 20 years in prison. He also could be placed on probation.

                        On appeal, Brent likely will challenge the decision to admit evidence of the compulsory blood test, given a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that attaches a warrant requirement in some circumstances to the mandatory drawing of blood.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                          Hmm how comes hes not getting the Donte Stallworth treatment?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                            He retired that's why

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Cowboys player Josh Brent arrested for intoxication manslaughter of teammate Jerry Brown(former Colt)

                              http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...tion/#comments

                              Jerry Jones issues statement after Josh Brent’s conviction

                              Posted by Michael David Smith on January 22, 2014, 8:16 PM EST
                              Jerry Jones
                              AP
                              Hours after former Cowboys defensive lineman Josh Brent was convicted of intoxication manslaughter in the death of fellow former Cowboy Jerry Brown, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has issued a brief statement on the matter.

                              “We understand the very serious nature of this situation and express our concerns for all of the families and individuals that have been affected by the tragedy of Jerry Brown’s death,” Jones said.

                              Brent and Brown were friends and former college teammates who went out together in December 2012. According to court testimony, Brent drank excessively and then got behind the wheel, with Brown as his passenger. Brown was killed in the subsequent crash.

                              Brent faces up to 20 years in prison.

                              Comment

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