Rules and Guidelines for Coffee Break Forum Threads and Posts

As I See It

As I look at those who post here, most of the time, we all share one thing. We have a few green lights under our name. Which means we aren't stupid and we have add value and helped other covers in other areas. Agreed?

So if we aren't ignorant on a consistent basis it is due to randomness or allowing things to stray outside the limits (Is that enough QA talk?). I don't think we need to start another Spanish Inquisition in these threads. We all understand now that the mentioned posts were out of line, isn't that enough of a boundry?

Courts have been debating for decades what profanity is, we're not going to be able to produce a textbook definition by Friday! So let's cut to the chase, stop the debate and get some suggestions put together. We have had some already, IMO we should compile some thoughts and allow the moderators (the moral and value police for these threads) to decide what they feel they can and can't do.

Once the lines have been decided upon we will be required to act accordingly and police ourselves, before the moderators or Marc has to step in.

Am I missing the point here? We're adults, I'm one that screwed up, you don't have to tell me twice. So I don't see why this is so difficult. What Marc decides to do is out of our hands and whether it's bandwidth, content or quantity really doesn't matter. He's asked us to do something, let's get an answer together.

Nobody in Particular

Randy Stewart said:

I'm one that screwed up, you don't have to tell me twice. So I don't see why this is so difficult. What Marc decides to do is out of our hands and whether it's bandwidth, content or quantity really doesn't matter. He's asked us to do something, let's get an answer together.

Click to expand...

While you ready to take the heat, it was a few of us. We have a chance to rectify the situation and we're going to try. I will take advantage of this post to ask Marc, "What effect (affect?), here I go again, does picture attachments have on the bandwidth". As you well know, I'm a novice to this kind of stuff. I have some beautiful pics that can be used as mood relaxers. Should we limit the size to conserve? Should we allow them at all? I intend to post the first draft of the "Rules of Engagement" this evening. My only concern is the attachment thing. Not what is going to be allowed, but things like frequency of posting them, size and its affect? on bandwidth. What's allowed will be addressed, once we know the ramifications of posting attachments. We still have some time, so, if you can, please post an explanation/solution to posting pics. Maybe reduce the size? Your call. We have had some cute pics of children and members and I would like to see it continue as a kind of "who we are" option. Later, y'all. Got work to do!

All this for this?

Posting Guidelines Draft

Not allowed
Profanity will not be tolerated . (this includes masking letters to circumvent the software) If you want to say “I had a (You know, that place down below) of a day.” the software will probably not allow it. Because it can be construed as another 4 letter word, try “heck”.
Content is to be "acceptable" – as determined by these guidelines. An unacceptable post or thread may result in a member reporting the post or Moderator intervention. Think before you post - would you want your children, Pastor, Mom, or Boss seeing what you're about to post?
No post/thread that can be construed to be Political or religious in nature. This includes innuendo.
Discussion is allowed - not insults. We all have our opinions on topics, but there is no need to sling mud. Mud shall defined as name calling, sarcasm and innuendo designed to cast another member as an object of scorn or ridicule. Practice the “Golden Rule” and we don’t have to define what that is.

Monitoring/Enforcement of Guidelines

Violation of the Guidelines will result in an E-mail or Private message to the member that they are considered to be outside the Guidelines established in these threads. Continued violations will be addressed in the Moderator’s Forums and continuation of those types of posts could result in further actions to deter it. A moderator may ask you to “take it outside the Cove”. This does not mean “Private Messaging”. This means E-mail outside the Cove Domain. This may be the result of a “Reported Post”, or “Moderator Intervention”. If it is determined by the Moderators to fall outside the guidelines established, the offending post will be deleted.
No thread will be closed until all options have been exercised. If this happens, a Moderator will explain why. A Moderator(s) in these forums may be contacted anytime regarding issues pertinent to these guidelines, via E-mail/Private Messaging .
Posts deleted will remain visible with a short explanation why. The post/thread will not be physically removed, rather, it will be left there as a reminder that this is serious business.
Some examples of topics: and limits:

Humor – Jokes, Roadkill Recipes, Fun Quizzes, Links to Fun Sites . No sexually explicit jokes. No disparaging ethnic material. This area will prove to be the most difficult. We will all have to try our best not to offend any particular group. There are no clear-cut guidelines to follow in this area. Think real hard before you post something regarding groups of any kind. Posts that are reported or seen to be offensive will be handled on a case by case basis, for “Intent”. It’s a start. The Roadkill Recipes is a thread that may be considered in poor taste. However, it’s been around a long time and is not the thread with issues. Use the old Cove rule, here. If you don’t care for it, don’t visit. It should stay.
Announcements - charities, births, weddings, celebrations
Hobbies & Sports - Everything from Football to Racing, from Recipe Trading to Reading.
Work Topics-provided it’s not a topic already being discussed in the Business End of the Forums.
The Social Scene- Meetings, conventions, get-togethers, the Cove Classifieds. Be very careful here. If the social scene, including those listed, involves subjects/topics that can evolve into political or religious debates, they will fall under the enforcement guidelines. Is it worth posting about? Why are you posting it? What do you expect as a reaction? Not hard stuff.

Thing to remember before posting or starting a thread:
Think before you post
Re-read your post
If you uncertain about whether your post/thread topic is acceptable, contact a Moderator for their thoughts first.

These Guidelines were plagiarized from RC’s suggested guidelines. It was so thorough that there was very little to add. I have included my ideas regarding enforcement. I believe that the ultimate enforcement should be presented to moderators for a consensus. Someone may not like something and I would not want to act on it without other opinions. However, if Marc and others want to maintain a hands-off posture regarding CB issues, I am convinced we can reach a majority consensus among the interested members. Marc and Administrators see any post reported anyway and can follow the progress on issues. Let’s hope these are held to a minimum. I believe with the abolishment of the religious and political threads, it will not be difficult. As a member posted recently, there are a lot of green dot people who visit and participate here and it can be maintained to standards acceptable to Marc and others.

This draft is a rambling dissertation of what the eventual rules may be. Comment at will. It must be in by Friday, this week, so it must not languish. With RC’s two submittals and this, an effort has been made to meet Marc’s request for guidelines. Jump in now or forever hold your peace.

energy said:

Jump in now or forever hold your peace.

Click to expand...

Holding my peace.

Energy:

You have done a good job distilling the suggestions (and RC's excellent post) into what appears to be very close to a workable guideline. One thing I would like to see, though, is some sort of time limit on how long a particular post/thread is discussed before it is banished.

Just a thought.

Craig

Rapid response...guaranteed

Craig H. said:

Energy:

You have done a good job distilling the suggestions (and RC's excellent post) into what appears to be very close to a workable guideline. One thing I would like to see, though, is some sort of time limit on how long a particular post/thread is discussed before it is banished.

Just a thought.

Craig

Click to expand...

Craig,

The reaction will be as swift as possible. A lot depends on Marc's approved method of enforcement. If he wants it handled here, without a concensus of Moderators in the Moderator's Forum, the questionable post/thread can be removed and placed in "Quarantine" until a decision is made. If is deemed acceptable, it can be restored. Personally, I don't see that happening. We just have to think before we post. We're not walking on razor blades here. I mean, the mean old Moderator isn't going to be scrutinizing every post for violations. It's up to the members who visit and participate to be aware of the guidelines and act accordingly. The "report a post" feature should be used and we should not try to resolve it in an open forum. This could result in bickering and here we go again. Good point.

Just to clarify the "Quarantine" option. The thread would be temporarily deleted with the note "Under Review". The admin function allows restoration of the post/thread. It would also serve as a reminder that the questionable post/thread may contain something we agreed not to post on and the member knows that he/she is in the yellow zone.

energy said:

Posting Guidelines Draft

Not allowed
Think before you post - would you want your children, Pastor, Mom, or Boss seeing what you're about to post?

Humor – Jokes, Roadkill Recipes, Fun Quizzes, Links to Fun Sites . No disparaging ethnic material. This area will prove to be the most difficult. We will all have to try our best not to offend any particular group. There are no clear-cut guidelines to follow in this area. Think real hard before you post something regarding groups of any kind.

Click to expand...

A question for the moderators, just so everyone understands: Are blonde jokes or "hillbilly" jokes, etc. off limits now? I am a blonde, and some might say part hillbilly, and they don't bother me, and I would tell them to my pastor or Mom, and I see lots of them posted. Maybe a better question is, Do they offend anyone here"?

Biting my tongue!

I wouldn't think so

Mike S. said:

A question for the moderators, just so everyone understands: Are blonde jokes or "hillbilly" jokes, etc. off limits now? I am a blonde, and some might say part hillbilly, and they don't bother me, and I would tell them to my pastor or Mom, and I see lots of them posted. Maybe a better question is, Do they offend anyone here"?

Click to expand...

We have a lot of "Southerners" as members here and they have posted some of those jokes. My guess is that some Blonde jokes have some REDACTED references in them. Southern jokes often make reference to inbreeding. How crazy do we what to get with this? The guidelines should define the content. No?

Sam said:

Biting my tongue!

Click to expand...

Why's that, Sam? You never had a problem with speaking your mind before. This thread deals with posting specifics. Your thoughts on the whole situation may be expressed in the other threads. Do you have recommendations for guideline specifics?

If we tell jokes that other people take offence at like blonde or hillbilly jokes maybe we should just change the offensive word to Quality Professional. If we can’t laugh at ourselves then we are way to serious and should not have a joke thread.