Urgent Reminder - Please Read!
Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 12:00 pm
On behalf of the Moderators, I want to ask a favor of TexasCHLforum members that will make their lives/jobs much easier. In recent weeks, we have had a significant increase in posts that either directly violate Forum rules, or arguably do and require evaluation by the Moderator corps. These problems tend to come from new members and this is understandable since I suspect most people don’t actually read all of the rules before posting. In a perfect world all of us would do so, but the simple fact is we don’t. While understandable, it does cause problems for Moderators as evidenced by the number of responses they get saying something to the effect of “I didn’t know about the rule.”
So here’s the favor: if you haven’t read the rules, please do so and if you haven’t read them in a long time, please take time for a quick review.
Here is an example of the more common problems reported by members:
Many of our new members do not know the history of the TexasCHLforum so here is a very short version. For the first two years or so, we didn’t have any rules. We just followed what became known as the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” which held that you cannot post something you wouldn’t want said in front of your 10 year old daughter. As time went on and people started to complain about not having bright line rules, we had to abandon the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” and establish specific rules.
Although the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” is gone, we still live by that philosophy. We want women to feel comfortable here and we want parents to be equally comfortable in recommending TexasCHLforum to their children who want to learn about guns and gun related issues. If this is to continue, all of us, members and Moderators, need to conduct ourselves in compliance with the rules, the spirit of the rules, and the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” philosophy.
I want to comment on links to videos. This was a subject that was discussed in detail on the Moderator forum. The concern was language and other material that might render an otherwise educational video inappropriate. The ultimate decision was to allow questionable videos and links to such videos only if 1) the subject matter was educational; 2) it’s educational value exceeded the questionable language or content; and 3) an appropriate warning was included in the post. That is the rule we live by today. A video dealing with a fight on a buss was recently deleted and it was not an easy decision. It appeared to meet the above-listed requirements, but the subtitles included vulgar language making it impossible for viewers to simply turn off the audio. Again, it was an educational video and removing it was not an easy decision.
Overall, our members have been great and it is truly appreciated. However, a relative handful of members are pushing the envelop if not clearly violating the forum rules. I know because I can see the Moderator logs and the reports from members. Please help us maintain the atmosphere that has made our online community what it is today.
Thanks,
Chas.
So here’s the favor: if you haven’t read the rules, please do so and if you haven’t read them in a long time, please take time for a quick review.
Here is an example of the more common problems reported by members:
- Abbreviated profanity
Videos or links to videos that contain material that violates our rules
Personal attacks, both blatant and somewhat veiled
Sexually suggestive comments or photos
Many of our new members do not know the history of the TexasCHLforum so here is a very short version. For the first two years or so, we didn’t have any rules. We just followed what became known as the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” which held that you cannot post something you wouldn’t want said in front of your 10 year old daughter. As time went on and people started to complain about not having bright line rules, we had to abandon the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” and establish specific rules.
Although the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” is gone, we still live by that philosophy. We want women to feel comfortable here and we want parents to be equally comfortable in recommending TexasCHLforum to their children who want to learn about guns and gun related issues. If this is to continue, all of us, members and Moderators, need to conduct ourselves in compliance with the rules, the spirit of the rules, and the “Ten Year Old Daughter Rule” philosophy.
I want to comment on links to videos. This was a subject that was discussed in detail on the Moderator forum. The concern was language and other material that might render an otherwise educational video inappropriate. The ultimate decision was to allow questionable videos and links to such videos only if 1) the subject matter was educational; 2) it’s educational value exceeded the questionable language or content; and 3) an appropriate warning was included in the post. That is the rule we live by today. A video dealing with a fight on a buss was recently deleted and it was not an easy decision. It appeared to meet the above-listed requirements, but the subtitles included vulgar language making it impossible for viewers to simply turn off the audio. Again, it was an educational video and removing it was not an easy decision.
Overall, our members have been great and it is truly appreciated. However, a relative handful of members are pushing the envelop if not clearly violating the forum rules. I know because I can see the Moderator logs and the reports from members. Please help us maintain the atmosphere that has made our online community what it is today.
Thanks,
Chas.
