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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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OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

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  • #61
    Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

    Kobe and Dirk. (Jordan & Bird)

    Comment


    • #62
      Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

      Originally posted by D0NT SH0OT ME View Post
      No response to the rest of the post? Thought so.
      haha, what do you even want me to say in response to that rambling mess in the middle about letting emotions form my opinions? I don't have time for a philosophical debate (you're going to rip me a new one about this, aren't you?), but I'll respond to a few things:

      "Public relations representatives are paid to advise their clients as to how to conduct themselves, and the public is free to interpret that clients conduct for themselves. Not sure what kind of anti-PR agenda you have going on here."

      That's one way of saying what PR reps do. Another is that they are paid to make their clients look good in the public eye at all costs. I don't have anything against PR reps, I was just saying that your opinion is the product of a successful PR campaign.

      "The impression I am getting from both of you is that you believe Lebron is an egomaniac due to him using his fame to raise money for charity. Lets apply this belief to other people. Those people signing autographs? Egomaniacs. Those bands playing for charity? Egomaniacs. Celebrities endorsing charities? Egomaniacs. But you disagree don't you? You do not find these people to be egomaniacs. Why is that? They, like Lebron, are using their fame as a front to draw attention to the cause of their choice. So please, tell me, why do you hold Lebron to a different standard than all other celebrities? I know the answer, but do you?"

      You make so many assumptions here, it's ridiculous. Are you trying to say that Lebron is the only celebrity that I think is an egomaniac? Remember that part where I said I worked in the entertainment industry? A large percentage of celebrities are absolutely egomaniacs and I don't hold Lebron to a different standard at all. It's a case by case basis, as it is with everyone. But please, don't say signing autographs is the same thing as starring in a 1-hour special after two months of buildup about where you're going to sign your next contract.

      What you don't seem to understand is that unlike yourself, I don't believe The Decision's primary goal was to get money for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. I think The Decision's primary goal was to make Lebron the spotlight of the (sports) world. I think the Boys and Girls Club was used to make Lebron look like a better guy, so he would have at least some leg to stand on in discussions critiquing "The Decision." Did the Boys and Girls Club benefit from it? Absolutely. Does that mean The Decision happened only because Lebron wanted to raise money for them? No, it doesn't. Lebron could have shot a series of TV ads for the B+G clubs that would raise far more money and awareness than "The Decision".

      If you want to rip up everything I've said here and explain why I shouldn't base any of it off of emotions or whatever, feel free. But just know that my opinion here isn't an uncommon one. Is this the first time you've heard anyone call Lebron James an egomaniac? Do you have similar reactions when you hear it from other people or did I strike a particular nerve?

      Comment


      • #63
        Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

        These two are past their prime but i always enjoyrf their game

        Shawne Marion
        Gerald Wallace

        Comment


        • #64
          Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          haha, what do you even want me to say in response to that rambling mess in the middle about letting emotions form my opinions? I don't have time for a philosophical debate (you're going to rip me a new one about this, aren't you?), but I'll respond to a few things:
          Rambling mess? I made one precise point that has been scientifically proven. No philosophical debate here.

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          "Public relations representatives are paid to advise their clients as to how to conduct themselves, and the public is free to interpret that clients conduct for themselves. Not sure what kind of anti-PR agenda you have going on here."

          That's one way of saying what PR reps do. Another is that they are paid to make their clients look good in the public eye at all costs. I don't have anything against PR reps, I was just saying that your opinion is the product of a successful PR campaign.
          I thought that by copying your sentence and inserting the other sides argument (I did this twice) you might understand, but that clearly went right over your head. Anyways what I was trying to convey was that making these assumptions about each other do not mean anything. You can assume my opinion was formed by Lebron’s PR team, and I can assume your opinion was formed by the media trying to deface Lebron. Our assumptions do not prove anything other than that we disagree. They hold no water in a debate, so please stop trying to make them.

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          "The impression I am getting from both of you is that you believe Lebron is an egomaniac due to him using his fame to raise money for charity. Lets apply this belief to other people. Those people signing autographs? Egomaniacs. Those bands playing for charity? Egomaniacs. Celebrities endorsing charities? Egomaniacs. But you disagree don't you? You do not find these people to be egomaniacs. Why is that? They, like Lebron, are using their fame as a front to draw attention to the cause of their choice. So please, tell me, why do you hold Lebron to a different standard than all other celebrities? I know the answer, but do you?"

          You make so many assumptions here, it's ridiculous. Are you trying to say that Lebron is the only celebrity that I think is an egomaniac? Remember that part where I said I worked in the entertainment industry? A large percentage of celebrities are absolutely egomaniacs and I don't hold Lebron to a different standard at all. It's a case by case basis, as it is with everyone. But please, don't say signing autographs is the same thing as starring in a 1-hour special after two months of buildup about where you're going to sign your next contract.
          I thought this paragraph was rather easily understood. I will try to explain again. When a celebrity signs autographs, they are using their fame to draw attention to themselves. They then use this attention to benefit themselves or others in various means. The example I was trying to describe was a celebrity signing autographs to raise money for a charity. All of the attention is focused on the celebrity, with maybe a little afterthought going towards the charity they are aiding. This is no different than what Lebron did. The only exception is that instead of signing autographs, Lebron announced his free agency decision. The celebrity signing autographs knew people would pay to get his/her signature, and took advantage of that fact in order to aid a charity. Lebron knew people would watch a TV special about his free agency decision, and took advantage of that fact in order to aid a charity. Same goal, different method.

          And by the way, the only reason the special was an hour long was to maximize the advertising. Someone who describes themselves as being in the entertainment industry should understand this.

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          What you don't seem to understand is that unlike yourself, I don't believe The Decision's primary goal was to get money for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
          I fully understand that you don’t believe the decision’s primary goal was to raise money; from my understanding of what you have posted it seems you do not even believe it to be a secondary goal. Which of course is an utterly baseless assumption.

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          I think The Decision's primary goal was to make Lebron the spotlight of the (sports) world. I think the Boys and Girls Club was used to make Lebron look like a better guy, so he would have at least some leg to stand on in discussions critiquing "The Decision." Did the Boys and Girls Club benefit from it? Absolutely. Does that mean The Decision happened only because Lebron wanted to raise money for them? No, it doesn't.
          Let me get this straight, you are saying that Lebron and his PR team anticipated that an immense amount of criticism would be levied at “the decision”, yet decided to air the special anyways? What sane person would intentionally deface themselves like that?

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          Lebron could have shot a series of TV ads for the B+G clubs that would raise far more money and awareness than "The Decision".
          So your alternative to an event that lasted ONE HOUR and raised $5 million is a series of TV ads that would take weeks to shoot, months to show, thousands of dollars to produce, and millions of dollars to air? After all that money and time invested, there would not even be a guarantee of how much money would be donated and how high awareness would be raised. If I had to choose between the two I would take the $5 million in an hour every single time, and don’t tell me you wouldn’t too.

          Originally posted by CooperManning View Post
          If you want to rip up everything I've said here and explain why I shouldn't base any of it off of emotions or whatever, feel free. But just know that my opinion here isn't an uncommon one. Is this the first time you've heard anyone call Lebron James an egomaniac? Do you have similar reactions when you hear it from other people or did I strike a particular nerve?
          I fully disagree with anyone who believes Lebron is an egomaniac based purely upon the events of “the decision”, not just you. Also it is important to know that I am not just defending Lebron because he is my favorite player, which he isn’t. I would defend just about anyone if they had done the exact same thing. The thing that strikes a chord with me about you specifically is that you describe Kobe Bryant (a man accused of rape who settled the case out of court) as one of your favorite players, while Lebron (whom you believe to be an egomaniac) appears to be one of your least liked.

          Kobe – Fact: Accused of rape, settled the case for an undisclosed sum.

          Lebron – Opinion: Is an egomaniac.

          Who is the villain?
          Last edited by D0NT SH0OT ME; 04-21-2011, 12:37 AM.

          Comment


          • #65
            Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

            My fav player... Check the Avatar.

            Second fav non Pacer... Lebron.

            I've admired his leadership and tenacity ever since I watched him play in HS.

            He's so unjustly villainized it is insanse. How anyone can hate someone for a personal decision they have every right to make is beyond me. Don't people have their own lives to live to the fullest? Why can't Lebron capitalize on his brand to it's upmost potential?

            It's not like Lebron acted/acts like a man with poor moral fiber. I can't remember him being jealous of a teammate and snitched to the police he was an adulturer, or was accused of rape, or berates his teammates when things get tough, or throw towels on old ladies who want his autograph, or chuck water cups and towels in front of a ball boy just so he can pick them up, or throw your warm ups on a kids face, or demanded a trade when things were bleak instead of playing out his contract, or publicly defaced his front office to the point where his head coach wrote negatively about him in a NYT best seller.

            Nope, all he did was give everything he had to Cle over 7 years with one of the worst supporting casts in the history of the NBA (as their record indicates).
            My INDIANA Pacers dream team
            Coaching Staff: Larry Bird (HC), Mike Woodson and Steve Alford (AC's)
            Starting 5: Mike Conley, Eric Gordon, Gordon Hayward, Zach Randolph, and Greg Oden
            Bench: George Hill, Josh McRoberts, Courtney Lee, Luke Harangody, Jeff Teague, Jared Jefferies, Rodney Carney, Matt Howard, and the Zeller brothers.

            Comment


            • #66
              Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

              Originally posted by Thoreau87 View Post
              My fav player... Check the Avatar.

              Second fav non Pacer... Lebron.

              I've admired his leadership and tenacity ever since I watched him play in HS.

              He's so unjustly villainized it is insanse. How anyone can hate someone for a personal decision they have every right to make is beyond me. Don't people have their own lives to live to the fullest? Why can't Lebron capitalize on his brand to it's upmost potential?

              It's not like Lebron acted/acts like a man with poor moral fiber. I can't remember him being jealous of a teammate and snitched to the police he was an adulturer, or was accused of rape, or berates his teammates when things get tough, or throw towels on old ladies who want his autograph, or chuck water cups and towels in front of a ball boy just so he can pick them up, or throw your warm ups on a kids face, or demanded a trade when things were bleak instead of playing out his contract, or publicly defaced his front office to the point where his head coach wrote negatively about him in a NYT best seller.

              Nope, all he did was give everything he had to Cle over 7 years with one of the worst supporting casts in the history of the NBA (as their record indicates).
              His became a villain by leaving Cleveland the way he did. I have no problems with LBJ personally. Just clearing that up.
              Follow me at @Bluejbgold

              Comment


              • #67
                Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

                Josh smith
                Russel Westbrook

                Comment


                • #68
                  Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

                  Josh Smith
                  Eric Gordon
                  Chris Paul
                  OJ Mayo
                  Mike Conley
                  Kevin Durant
                  and, apparently in the near future, Josh McRoberts

                  Comment


                  • #69
                    Re: OT: Who is your favorite active NBA player that is NOT a Pacer?

                    Favorite active Non-Pacer? Steve Nash and LeBron James.

                    For Nash, as stated by others he's a likeable guy and just one of the best PGs in his generation.

                    For James, he takes to much heat here (no pun intended), but he just accomplished what other great players have not done: carrying a weak team to the NBA finals.

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