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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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George Floyd Protests and Riots

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  • Originally posted by graphic-er View Post

    And yet so many school districts across the country have created positions like "Director of Diversity and Inclusion" or "Diversity and Inclusion Officer". The schools haven't suddenly become more or less diverse over the past few years.... and you can't make a student body who is location based more diverse. So it must have something to do with the curriculum??
    I don't know. I suspect the schools have become steadily more diverse over quite some time. Of course there are pockets of highly homogenous schools. In higher ed, the browning of the recruitment pool is advancing rather rapidly - a combination of much lower birth rates amongst whites the last 15 or so years and population growth, especially amongst Latinos. In fact, Latinos are estimated to comprise 25% of the national population in about 15 years. And the country will become minority white about 2045. So, seems to me the schools are diversifying whether over night or gradually. Hence, the importance of personnel expressly charged with supporting this transition in a supportive, inclusive environment.

    I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.

    -Emiliano Zapata

    Comment


    • Originally posted by Bball View Post

      That sounds like a good idea to me. And in an area where there is very little diversity, it seems like it could be even more important.
      Absolutely. With the coming minority-majority society, the homogenous communities will benefit from embracing inclusion and openness to difference.
      I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.

      -Emiliano Zapata

      Comment


      • RE: Greg Abbott So they need to keep CRT out at all costs so the state/curriculum/teachers don't make decision without parental consent. But if you as a parent support non-conforming gender identity of your child, the state can punish you, individual parental rights be damned? So sad this trafficking exaggeration and hypocrisy.
        I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.

        -Emiliano Zapata

        Comment


        • Originally posted by graphic-er View Post

          And yet so many school districts across the country have created positions like "Director of Diversity and Inclusion" or "Diversity and Inclusion Officer". The schools haven't suddenly become more or less diverse over the past few years.... and you can't make a student body who is location based more diverse. So it must have something to do with the curriculum??
          I will just speak from my little corner of brownsburg. They hired a equity and diversity coordinator in May of 2021. In my 6 years of living here I sense the diversity has changed. I personally have helped 2 coworkers move here. One family is Chinese and another is an Indian family. Both of them moved for the schools.

          When the school board election happened I asked Mike Wells what he would change and he said that he would like to see more diversity in teacher highers. The diversity in the faculity is pretty bad so I support that initiative.

          To me Brownsburg schools are really good and stand out in academics and in accommodations to special need kids. I know families of special needs kids that were and are drawn to the school district. So yeah when you do something well you tend to attract more diverse people with diverse needs which is why I am not afraid of a new diversity position. It seems proactive which is what I want in my school's.
          Last edited by Gamble1; 02-23-2022, 11:37 PM.

          Comment


          • So this Russia invasion thing is happening. I don't see the logic behind it personally since it's not like these regions are in some strategic location like Crimea was. He basically will tank his economy for farmland unless he takes all of Ukraine.





            Comment


            • I think you all make good points, I am certainly not against hiring more diverse staff in schools. And I certainly want history taught as it happened, along with an acknowledgment that history has rippling effects.

              But I do think some concepts from CRT are funneling down to the k-12 curriculum. When I see stories about class room exercises around topics like oppressed vs oppressors, white privilege, or equality of outcome, or how you can be anti-racist — in elementary school…are you approaching a tipping point where you are teaching young people to treat minorities with kid gloves because they are perceived to be at such a disadvantage compared your whiteness​​​​​​? Are you at the same time instilling a sense of victimhood into young minority minds? Do you want the education system to have a racial curve built-into the evaluation of students?

              Wasn’t there a headline recently talking about how standardized testing is a form white supremacy?
              https://kpic.com/amp/news/local/depa...oup-dan-farley
              You can't get champagne from a garden hose.

              Comment


              • Originally posted by D-BONE View Post

                I don't know. I suspect the schools have become steadily more diverse over quite some time. Of course there are pockets of highly homogenous schools. In higher ed, the browning of the recruitment pool is advancing rather rapidly - a combination of much lower birth rates amongst whites the last 15 or so years and population growth, especially amongst Latinos. In fact, Latinos are estimated to comprise 25% of the national population in about 15 years. And the country will become minority white about 2045. So, seems to me the schools are diversifying whether over night or gradually. Hence, the importance of personnel expressly charged with supporting this transition in a supportive, inclusive environment.
                This is a digression but I will just note that this is not quite what it seems; in those estimates I am not considered white for instance, because this number is non-Hispanic whites and I'm Hispanic (which is a made up thing anyway but that's a story for another time) as the son of a Puerto Rican and a Cuban. And I'm a blonde haired blue eyed guy from Missouri who only speaks English and whose given name is ****ing Steve.

                The overwhelming majority of Latinos in America are white, something like 3/4ths if memory serves. Granted some are mestizos pushing it a bit but a LOT are of predominantly European descent like me. Which if you're familiar with the history of Latin America ought not be surprising.

                Just saying, don't expect the country to look that different in 2050. This line of a coming majority minority America is just trotted out to excite or scare as needed.

                Comment


                • Originally posted by Gamble1 View Post
                  So this Russia invasion thing is happening. I don't see the logic behind it personally since it's not like these regions are in some strategic location like Crimea was. He basically will tank his economy for farmland unless he takes all of Ukraine.
                  I think he is banking on the idea that just like Crimea many Ukrainians will welcome them with open arms.

                  it could also just be a land grab for those 2 Russian separatist regions which would connect with Crimea. He has had his hand over those 2 regions for a long while now, now just wants to make it official?

                  he is also testing the international response of NATO. Weak NATO Response will set precedent for further invasion. Is German willing to tank their economy over the natural gas pipe line from Russia? Probably not.

                  Let’s not forget what message it would send to China vs Taiwan.
                  You can't get champagne from a garden hose.

                  Comment


                  • So, pretty obviously, the Ukrainian military melted away, likely intentionally at the start of this for what is probably 'non-traditional' warfare that they have planned. But, I would've expected some of that non-traditional warfare, if not traditional warfare, to have taken place as the tanks and trucks rolled in. Odd that there wasn't SOME resistance, even if it was just token things.

                    The next question is: Does the military still answer to command and control, and act when called upon with these plans... or do they use this plan to melt away as an opportunity to melt away? IOW, is it already over, or has it not even really begun?
                    Nuntius was right for a while. I was wrong for a while. But ultimately I was right and Frank Vogel has been let go.

                    ------

                    "A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."

                    -John Wooden

                    Comment


                    • Originally posted by graphic-er View Post

                      I think he is banking on the idea that just like Crimea many Ukrainians will welcome them with open arms.

                      it could also just be a land grab for those 2 Russian separatist regions which would connect with Crimea. He has had his hand over those 2 regions for a long while now, now just wants to make it official?

                      he is also testing the international response of NATO. Weak NATO Response will set precedent for further invasion. Is German willing to tank their economy over the natural gas pipe line from Russia? Probably not.

                      Let’s not forget what message it would send to China vs Taiwan.
                      Germany economy will suffer but it won't fall off the cliff. Gas will rise but that will happen globally as well spreading out the cost. The pipeline is a long term issue for Germany and NATO. This is why they will reduce their dependence on the gas and the US also put back the sanctions on the pipeline that were removed a year ago so there is very little wiggle room for Germany on that front.

                      I am interested in what the sanctions will actually do. Will it be worse than Iran? The only thing I think this does is push all NATO members to boost defense capabilities.





                      Comment


                      • Originally posted by Bball View Post
                        So, pretty obviously, the Ukrainian military melted away, likely intentionally at the start of this for what is probably 'non-traditional' warfare that they have planned. But, I would've expected some of that non-traditional warfare, if not traditional warfare, to have taken place as the tanks and trucks rolled in. Odd that there wasn't SOME resistance, even if it was just token things.

                        The next question is: Does the military still answer to command and control, and act when called upon with these plans... or do they use this plan to melt away as an opportunity to melt away? IOW, is it already over, or has it not even really begun?
                        Great question. Ukraine acted slowly with calling up its reserves. If it wanted to defend all of its territory then it would of done more earlier on as in months ago when Russia was building up.

                        Comment


                        • Originally posted by SaintLouisan View Post

                          This is a digression but I will just note that this is not quite what it seems; in those estimates I am not considered white for instance, because this number is non-Hispanic whites and I'm Hispanic (which is a made up thing anyway but that's a story for another time) as the son of a Puerto Rican and a Cuban. And I'm a blonde haired blue eyed guy from Missouri who only speaks English and whose given name is ****ing Steve.

                          The overwhelming majority of Latinos in America are white, something like 3/4ths if memory serves. Granted some are mestizos pushing it a bit but a LOT are of predominantly European descent like me. Which if you're familiar with the history of Latin America ought not be surprising.

                          Just saying, don't expect the country to look that different in 2050. This line of a coming majority minority America is just trotted out to excite or scare as needed.
                          Your point is well taken. A good clarification/correction. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnic grouping. But the country is clearly becoming more diverse (racially, ethnically, linguistically, sexual/gender identity, etc. The responsibility of DEI personnel is to improve access and environments for diverse population and promote education/understanding amongst different demographics in schools. That seems like a sensible idea.
                          I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.

                          -Emiliano Zapata

                          Comment


                          • Originally posted by graphic-er View Post
                            I think you all make good points, I am certainly not against hiring more diverse staff in schools. And I certainly want history taught as it happened, along with an acknowledgment that history has rippling effects.

                            But I do think some concepts from CRT are funneling down to the k-12 curriculum. When I see stories about class room exercises around topics like oppressed vs oppressors, white privilege, or equality of outcome, or how you can be anti-racist — in elementary school…are you approaching a tipping point where you are teaching young people to treat minorities with kid gloves because they are perceived to be at such a disadvantage compared your whiteness​​​​​​? Are you at the same time instilling a sense of victimhood into young minority minds? Do you want the education system to have a racial curve built-into the evaluation of students?

                            Wasn’t there a headline recently talking about how standardized testing is a form white supremacy?
                            https://kpic.com/amp/news/local/depa...oup-dan-farley
                            That link didn't offer any context/details. I clicked through the video from the DOE/School board/whatever it was and scanned that closely. There are references to White Supremacy, but they really only ever talk about assessment, and from a fairly macro level.

                            There's a long history of criticism of standardized testing, both in terms of it being culturally biased, as well as its impacts on all students since it has become so ubiquitous in K-12. Many colleges/universities have gone test optional for admission.

                            Some of the stuff they were talking about - building in more formative assessments along the way sound good for everyone. Just sound like sound practice. Educational methods people and teachers have been on variety in assessment type and frequency for a long time now.

                            There's no specifics on curriculum (in the video anyway). But if the types of topics you're describing in your post are going on in grade school, that's not developmentally appropriate in my mind. But, if those are even legit, I suspect they are exaggerated or misleading. In college? Maybe, maybe not. In grad school, probably in some areas.

                            All that said, if you can't - at a point where students can intellectually understand the concept - state that something like ,say, slavery or Jim Crow oppressed black and privileged whites, then you aren't serious about honest discussions of history.
                            Last edited by D-BONE; 02-24-2022, 06:23 PM.
                            I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.

                            -Emiliano Zapata

                            Comment


                            • And I'm reading this AM that the so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill passed FL house. Full transparency, I haven't read the specifics of it. I do know it contains the developmentally appropriate language in targeting K-3rd grade.

                              Personally, it would all depend on what that means precisely as it applies to what teachers can do and say in a classroom. Young children can and should be aware of difference and how to interact with it from a very young age. Their openness and adaptability at that age is advantageous to promoting respect and inclusion as they grow and mature.

                              Schools should be places that positively affirm the range of diverse identities in our classroom and our society. If these types of laws seek to shield/block young children from even awareness and any discussion of characteristics like sexual identity, that's simply shaping poor educational/social practice. It's also a slap in the face to educators, who are experts and professionals in their field. Measures like this are attempts to restrict and punish the whole as opposed to addressing individual situations that are mishandled, which are the vast minority of cases.


                              I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.

                              -Emiliano Zapata

                              Comment

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