Pregame Forums Constitution (last updated: 8/18/09)
Clearly stated values that will guide our communitys growth . . .
It is our belief that the Forum is owned by its contributors. We consider your every contribution to be like another a share of stock and that is an ownership we will always respect.
1) The mission of the Pregame Forums is to inform & entertain while together improving our odds. The best way to accomplish this is to create an environment in which everyone gets back more than they give (from the many others giving).
2) It is not possible to find a community where you will like everyone or agree with the consensus on every issue. Your expectation should be respect for a majority of participants most of the time, and agreement with the consensus most of the time. Keeping this concept in mind helps minimize the seriousness of inevitable disagreements.
3) Three types of talk will be moderated:
* Lies
* Bigoted attacks against any group!
* Non-constructive criticism! Not only does it serve NO purpose, but it discourages what we most want to most encourage contribution. Constructive criticism is defined as sincere counter-points (without personal attacks) intended to further debate.
If a poster is providing info which you do not value, do not attack it rather ignore it. Acceptance and appreciation on the Forums comes from thread views and replies . . . by doing neither, you are making a statement. Remember, constructive criticism is defined as sincere counter-points (without personal attacks) intended to further debate. Pregame Moderators will be especially rigorous in this area.
After-the-fact criticism of picks WILL NOT be tolerated. Good pickers often lose (and poor pickers often win). Piling on after a loss is not constructive - offenders will be banned.
4) Premium content is sold world-wide in every area of specialization, so it makes sense that sports betting expertise would be sold. No one is ever obligated to spend even a single penny. Buy only what you consider worth its sales price.
5) To insure that enjoyment of the forum is not hindered, restrictions will apply to the promotion of premium content:
* Promoters must earn the right to promote by providing valuable free content that's DOUBLE or more the amount of promotion (called the "2 for 1 rule). The double amount applies to the sum of overall content/promotion, not individual posts.
* No post/thread should contain only promotion unless clearly marked as such.
* Promotion, no matter the amount of free content provided, should not be repetitive or overwhelming.
* Promoters must be ultra respectful about promotion within threads started by others.
* Promotion is limited to Pregame.com endorsed products
* Signatures (which appear every time a poster posts) shall not be overly touty.
6) Sexy pics are allowed, but limited. No X-rated pics (meaning genitals or sex acts), but R-rated is fine. Please, only post R-rated pics in threads that you start, and make the first words of your title R-rated: . . . As a guideline, if the image could be on HBO in the afternoon, then it is fine if not, then no.
7) Dirty words are part of life, but please avoid using an extreme amount.
8) Part of being a good participant is encouraging a culture that will foster the type of forum we want - not only through your actions, but also by encouraging the positive actions of others. For example, if you see a poster (especially a newbie) straying outside of our principles, call him on it in a friendly way, and explain why the Pregame way is better. Be careful not to make a big issue of them being wrong the intention should be to encourage them to start doing right.
9) Your personal contact information (such as email/Twitter/phone number/instant messenger info) CANNOT be displayed. The reason is two-fold: 1) Spammers collect contact info from major forum sites and will bombard you with spam; 2) Often times posters with a commercial agenda will attempt to build marketing lists by posting their contact information. Judgment on a case-by-case basis is not possible, so it must be universally forbidden.
10) Forbidden links include: a) Spam-type promotion for commercial gain; or b) links to direct competitors of Pregame.com. Other links provided in an effort to be helpful are welcome. Hints at how to find unapproved sites (example: go to google and search . . . ) are not acceptable.
11) Posting under MULTIPLE identities is not allowed. Knowing whos really doing the talking on a forum helps a reader evaluate the info provided. If you think a poster is using multiple-identities, email us with the evidence and well take care of it right away. Do not make it a public trial.
12) Editing any post after the fact in an attempt to deceive will result in an immediate lifetime ban.
13) Since stated W/L records act as a guide on who to follow, any purposeful lying about records will result in an immediate lifetime ban.
14) The best number of rules is the least possible rules that will still maintain order. We have limited specific rules to clearly destructive actions. In general, we will not tolerate conduct detrimental to the general mission of the Forums. That is, anything which gets in the way of posters informing & entertaining is prohibited. Although such causes are not always clear cut, we will act when the intent is obviously destructive.
15) The constitution is the general principles that together we have broadly agreed upon and they will be rigorously enforced by Pregame Moderators. This is a living document that will evolve over time (the beginning of each month well start a thread soliciting for more feedback) . When we are uncertain, we should be guided by it. When discussing behavior, we should feel free to quote it because it is a representation of what we want the Forum to be.
16) Possible penalties for violating The Constitution: warning; 1 day ban; 3 day ban; 7 day ban; 30 day ban; lifetime ban. Typically the penalties will increase one step at a time, but steps may be skipped or repeated based upon the severity of the violation.
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