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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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  • Originally posted by vnzla81 View Post

    I believe you are overrating people buying tickets, the numbers say they don't make much money there.

    City subsidies plus NBA money plus team valuation >> season ticket holders sitting there enjoying mediocrity.
    Do we know what the actual amount of money is from ticket sales?


    Basketball isn't played with computers, spreadsheets, and simulations. ChicagoJ 4/21/13

    Comment


    • Originally posted by Peck View Post

      Do we know what the actual amount of money is from ticket sales?
      I need to check the post again when I get some time.
      @WhatTheFFacts: Studies show that sarcasm enhances the ability of the human mind to solve complex problems!

      Comment


      • 32 million in 21/22

        https://www.statista.com/statistics/...2F22%20season.
        So Long And Thanks For All The Fish.

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

        Comment


        • Why are most of you here? "Not top 25%"=worst team management? Championship in 5 years or get out of town? Injuries don't matter (except they are why Philly's process didn't work.)

          Just go be Kings fans who haven't won a series in 19 years but by golly are Contenders because they only got beat by the previous champs, unlike the Pacers who were embarrassed by being beaten by the previous year's champs.

          The double standards here are palpable. If you think the team isn't losing enough go be the fan of the team who literally has won the lottery every losing season they've had instead of whining about the team that has never won it.
          BillS

          A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
          Or throw in a first-round pick and flip it for a max-level point guard...

          Comment


          • Originally posted by Dece View Post

            That's not at all the argument I'm making. The argument I'm making is that if you are happy when the team makes bad moves, or fails to make good ones by doing nothing, than you are a mark. You might as well just come out and say, "please daddy billionaire please let me give you my time energy and money, I want nothing in return from you, please just take it!"

            I was mad when they drafted Leaf. I was mad when they drafted Psycho-T. I was mad when they drafted Duarte. I was mad when they traded for George Hill. I was mad when they gave up a draft pick for the honor of signing Brogdon. I was mad when the Pacers traded a first round pick for Thad Young. I was mad and I have consistently been mad at the team for 15 years or so, because they have consistently made bad moves. The evidence is in the product, it's been a bad team for a decade. What you're suggesting, though, is that the team is only capable of making bad moves, that it is impossible for them to make good moves. That isn't true. They could start making good moves tomorrow, I just don't believe they will.

            Someday, at least, ownership will have to change hands. That's really the best hope, aside from just getting dumb lucky and winning the draft lottery from the 10 spot, or drafting (another) Paul George at 10. I am tired, though, of having to wait for dumb luck because management is incompetent.
            I'm not sure where I indicated that I'm happy when the team makes bad moves, or that the team is only capable of making bad moves. I'm pretty sure I've stated in the past that this team all but lost me, particularly when we were running Brogdon/Levert whatever else that garbage lineup was. What I'm trying to emphasize is, I think the team has made good moves, whether due to a good decision or sheer dumb luck. I've celebrated those moves. I'm happy we aren't stuck with the corpse of Oladipo. I'm happy with Mathruin last year. I was torn on trading Sabonis, but understood the decision. Not everything that has happened is all bad, and I can objectively see that. Are the Pacers dumpy? Yes. Have they been for a while? Yes. But I'm also not going to sit here every day saying, ad nauseam, zomg they're dumpy, because that gets redundant very quickly.

            So, to put some productivity in this, who would they have to draft this year to make you happy? Or is whatever the Pacers do going to be a bad move because it wasn't 5th pick?
            Peck is basically omniscient when it comes to understanding how the minds of Herb Simon and Kevin Pritchard work. I was a fool to ever question him and now feel deep shame for not understanding that this team believes in continuity above talent.

            Comment


            • Originally posted by BornReady View Post

              I'm not sure where I indicated that I'm happy when the team makes bad moves, or that the team is only capable of making bad moves. I'm pretty sure I've stated in the past that this team all but lost me, particularly when we were running Brogdon/Levert whatever else that garbage lineup was. What I'm trying to emphasize is, I think the team has made good moves, whether due to a good decision or sheer dumb luck. I've celebrated those moves. I'm happy we aren't stuck with the corpse of Oladipo. I'm happy with Mathruin last year. I was torn on trading Sabonis, but understood the decision. Not everything that has happened is all bad, and I can objectively see that. Are the Pacers dumpy? Yes. Have they been for a while? Yes. But I'm also not going to sit here every day saying, ad nauseam, zomg they're dumpy, because that gets redundant very quickly.

              So, to put some productivity in this, who would they have to draft this year to make you happy? Or is whatever the Pacers do going to be a bad move because it wasn't 5th pick?
              Whatever the Pacers do will be dumb because the Pacers did it. Whatever the Pacers didn’t do would have been the smart move.

              Trolling isn’t that hard, lol, they think they are clever.

              Comment


              • Originally posted by Dece View Post
                Longest playoff series win droughts in the NBA:

                19 years Hornets
                19 years Kings
                19 years Timberwolves
                15 years Pistons
                13 years Magic
                9 years Pacers

                The Pacers are the 6th worst team in the league, for the decade. The Kings almost managed to shift them into 5th there.
                Here's another interesting one:

                Longest NBA Conference Finals Droughts -> https://champsorchumps.us/drought/lo...finals-drought

                44 years Wizards
                35 years Hornets
                22 years Knicks
                21 years Sixers
                21 years Pelicans
                20 years Kings
                19 years Nets
                18 years Timberwolves
                16 years Jazz
                15 years Pistons
                13 years Magic
                12 years Bulls
                9 years Pacers
                9 years Grizzlies

                So, that list would have us tied for 14th worst. In other words, we're pretty middle of the road on this list.

                Of course, it depends on what one considers success. Some people consider making the playoffs a success. That would be the case with this year's Kings, for example. They had just broken the record for longest NBA playoff drought the year before and they were desperate to make the playoffs which is why they pulled the trigger on trading Hali. The trade helped them make the playoffs this year and put an end to their streak. They didn't win a playoff series but this was still a highly successful season for them. That's why Monte McNair won Executive of the Year after all.

                Other people only consider it a success if the team wins a playoff series. For others, the bar is making the Conference Finals. For others, the bar is making the Finals. And there are also those for whom the bar for success is winning the title itself. Nothing short of that counts as a success.

                So, yeah, it depends on what one considers success and where does everyone set that bar. Everyone has the right to their opinion. For what is worth, this is what Giannis had to say on the matter:

                Originally posted by IrishPacer
                Empty vessels make the most noise.

                Comment


                • Originally posted by able View Post
                  About what I expected not as much as some people think.
                  @WhatTheFFacts: Studies show that sarcasm enhances the ability of the human mind to solve complex problems!

                  Comment


                  • Originally posted by BillS View Post
                    Why are most of you here? "Not top 25%"=worst team management? Championship in 5 years or get out of town? Injuries don't matter (except they are why Philly's process didn't work.)

                    Just go be Kings fans who haven't won a series in 19 years but by golly are Contenders because they only got beat by the previous champs, unlike the Pacers who were embarrassed by being beaten by the previous year's champs.

                    The double standards here are palpable. If you think the team isn't losing enough go be the fan of the team who literally has won the lottery every losing season they've had instead of whining about the team that has never won it.
                    Not top 25% a single time in 9, soon to be 10 tries Bill. Try to at least pretend to not straw man. I don't believe you genuinely are unable to comprehend what I'm saying. I don't have double standard, I've made my standard very clear. Meanwhile you seemingly have no standards at all.
                    Last edited by Dece; 05-19-2023, 06:38 PM.

                    Comment


                    • Originally posted by kent beckley View Post

                      Whatever the Pacers do will be dumb because the Pacers did it. Whatever the Pacers didn’t do would have been the smart move.

                      Trolling isn’t that hard, lol, they think they are clever.
                      I guess the Pacers make all the right moves and it's just bad luck they don't win in the playoffs. So unlucky, but what can be done. We've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas.

                      Comment


                      • Originally posted by Dece View Post
                        I don't have double standard, I've made my standard very clear.
                        Actually, you do. I remember you during the Vogel era. You weren't a happy camper then either. You wanted the team to fire Vogel. You wanted the ECF core broken up. Well, Bird did what you wanted. You got your wish. Do you like the results?
                        Originally posted by IrishPacer
                        Empty vessels make the most noise.

                        Comment


                        • Originally posted by Dece View Post

                          I guess the Pacers make all the right moves and it's just bad luck they don't win in the playoffs. So unlucky, but what can be done. We've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas.
                          I have enjoyed watching the Pacers for the last 30+ years, and yes that includes the last 9 years, because it is entertainment. I have been entertained. That is the point.

                          I am not relying on a group of young men to provide my life some fulfillment by accomplishing something in their careers while I stand by doing nothing. I have plenty of fulfilling things in my own life. I don’t need to live vicariously through a basketball team. But, to each their own. I hope someday you can find the happiness that you are searching for.

                          Comment


                          • Originally posted by kent beckley View Post

                            I have enjoyed watching the Pacers for the last 30+ years, and yes that includes the last 9 years, because it is entertainment. I have been entertained. That is the point.

                            I am not relying on a group of young men to provide my life some fulfillment by accomplishing something in their careers while I stand by doing nothing. I have plenty of fulfilling things in my own life. I don’t need to live vicariously through a basketball team. But, to each their own. I hope someday you can find the happiness that you are searching for.
                            Now you're just projecting bud. I find that people who preen about how happy they are and try to put others down with this sort of holier than thou preaching are typically miserable old men.

                            Comment


                            • Originally posted by Nuntius View Post

                              Actually, you do. I remember you during the Vogel era. You weren't a happy camper then either. You wanted the team to fire Vogel. You wanted the ECF core broken up. Well, Bird did what you wanted. You got your wish. Do you like the results?
                              You seem to not understand what a double standard is so I will help you. A double standard is two simultaneously held positions, typically positions at odds with another. So even if you were correct and I believed one thing in 2013 and believe a different thing in 2023, that would not be anything remotely similar to a double standard. Simultaneous is the key, in this case.

                              However you're even more incorrect than that, I don't typically talk much about coaching because I didn't then, and don't now, really know what makes coaches successful or not. At most I draw inferences on their success over time relative to the talent they have available, but I'm not now, and wasn't then, a guy who beat the fire the coach drum much. I do challenge you to find me ranting about how Vogel should be fired. I think you'll likely find you're confusing me for V of that era, which is understandable we do often have similar points of view.

                              The thing you aren't wrong on, though, is I was unhappy with what the team was doing then. I never believed in Hibbert, I thought he was a bum and he would hold the team back. He was out of the league soon after. I was also pissed about trading for George Hill. There was also a period of time I was quite unhappy with Paul George after he stopped caring and knocked up that stripper, although I've since come around on that era being less his fault, and more the inevitable outcome of him seeing how poor management was. Probably he also just did some maturing and growing.

                              I won't take the time to respond to your years since last conference finals point but just as a quick add in here, I think that's a bad point for a few reasons. One you can easily just go, years since last NBA title and the Pacers have never listed there. Second, I don't, and I don't think many people do, care who was winning 15-20-25-30 years ago. I think looking at the last 5-10 years is much more indicative of how well a franchise is being run when you consider personnel aging out, ownership changing hands, etc.

                              Comment


                              • Originally posted by Dece View Post

                                Now you're just projecting bud. I find that people who preen about how happy they are and try to put others down with this sort of holier than thou preaching are typically miserable old men.
                                Lol, you just hit me with the Pee-Wee Herman “I know you are but what am I”

                                Comment

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