I'm skipping a post-game right now to do something I hoped to never have to do, which is present the community with a set of guidelines. I hoped to never have to do this because we never really had many problems before, but when you grow and you get new users, it happens.
99% of you will have no problems with any of this and can keep on doing what you've always done. Frankly if you've been here a while, you can probably skip over this.
When you sign up for an account, you are given a quick run-through of things not to do. Apparently some people didn't read this, so let me say it again in bold font:
DO NOT post anything that is even *maybe* racist, sexist or homophobic. You will be banned. I will not owe you an explanation.
Don't ignore requests from moderators either. Here is a list of people that are fully considered as "staff" at Camden Chat:
- SC (me)
- zknower
- duck
- Stacey
- 2632
- Jonny Pops
If any of these people ask you to stop doing something, please listen. Frankly if anyone ever asks you to stop doing something, you should probably at least give it a good solid think, because you're bothering another user.
I understand you may disagree, so in a case like that please just drop the issue and you can email me. My email is easy to find on the site. Or if I'm the one asking you to drop the issue, probably just consider that your warning. I don't think we're big shots or anything, but you can't disrespect the moderators and expect that it's going to fly. You will be banned. In this instance I will explain my reasoning, though, and there's even a chance it won't stick if we can come to an understanding.
Try not to be a crass jerk just because it's "only a sports blog." If I wanted this site to be like a lot of other sports blogs, you wouldn't have warnings of what not to do when you sign up. Listen, you can profess your attraction to Amber Theoharis and that's fine, but be tasteful about it. "Cute," if you will. Don't be crude. It's not going to go over well.
Cursing isn't a problem with me. I understand heat of the moment game cursing. We keep it off the front page because people read at work or school or whatever. But if you ever think, "Maybe I shouldn't go quite that far," you probably shouldn't. Don't turn this into "Deadwood."
Look, bottom line is this: Have some decency and don't be stupid. The truth is we're pretty loose compared to many places, but this isn't going to be the wild west. I know sports blogs are supposed to be totally awesome places where sports fans can be sports fans, but you also don't get to act like a jerk.
I also don't want to hear anything about "censorship," so if you want to go that route right now, save it. We're going to police people that can't act like civilized adults. Period. This isn't your everyday life where if you feel like it, really you can go around being as obnoxious and offensive as you want to. No one can ban you from your living room. I can ban you from this site. And I really don't want to.
I know some of the longer-standing users here might think I'm getting too strict, but the fact is I've never had to delete 150 comments from a gamethread before tonight. The rules have always been the same. It's just that nobody was putting them to the test before. We are sort of elitist, yes. I prefer it this way, and it won't change.
Again, 99% of you can go on knowing this really has nothing to do with you, and we'll all just go back to debating the merits of Lou Montanez.