New Rules (Member Review)

[MattB]

For the past month or so, the staff have been rewriting the rules, adding a few new ones and removing ambiguities from the current ones. Now we'd like to release the new document for a member review. We feel that such a large change to the rules should be open for comments / suggestions / questions, so this is your chance.

The new rules can be read here: https://atheistforums.org/rules2.php

Changes include but are not limited to:

• Merging of the "This is a discussion forum" rule into the "Spamming" rule.
  
• Splitting the "No Flaming" rule into rules covering "Flaming" and "Threats" independently.
  
• New rule concerning "doxing" (the revealing of personally identifying information about a person).
  
• Merging "Disrupting Forum Activity", "Member Access", and "Uploading Files" into one rule "Disrupting Forum Functionality".
  
• New rule concerning the posting of graphic content.
  
• New rule concerning putting restrictions on thread participation.
  
• New rule concerning the creation of posts using Unicode characters which don't appear in the Basic Latin Unicode block.
  
• A new section which highlights are minor protection policy.
  
• A new section which details the types of punishment we have.
  
• A new section describing the staff roles.
  
• A new section linking to our privacy policy.
  

You will also find that most if not all rules have been rewritten with updated language.

Any comments etc. are welcome in this thread.

I find these rules to be very good allow discussions but prevent problems

I couldn't get the original link to work until I changed it to http://www.atheistforums.org/rules2.php
Don't know what I did wrong.

[Whateverist]

These seem easy to understand. I've never read the rules before but these seem like they might be fairly easy for staff to apply. Good job everyone.

[Pyrrho]

... I've never read the rules before ...

Well, you are such a recent member, having only joined in 2011, how could anyone expect you to have read the rules before now?

[vorlon13]

I just figured the admins issued decrees and edicts and the mods efficiently and ruthlessly carried them out.

[Whateverist]

... I've never read the rules before ...

Well, you are such a recent member, having only joined in 2011, how could anyone expect you to have read the rules before now?

My contention has been that if the rules are so surprising that basic manners alone won't suffice, boot my butt so I can find someplace better.  I was just looking them over this time out of curiosity to try and imagine what it must be like for staff to apply them.

[Foxaèr]

Let me break all the rules. xD

[Violet]

Sometimes, I think about changelogs. Then I remember that that's work for people who aren't me.

... So, happy birthday, get back to work

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So, I read them. Skimmed them, really. Like they were milk. Of the skim variety. And I drank of that but the skim of the skim. It turns out, the rules are kinda.... skimpy. Boy did you cut down on bloat~

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I'm of the opinion that if you moderate reasonably, you can have the most utterly draconian of rules in place. You don't. But you could. And I wouldn't care. Unless you moderated as if you cared. A lot. More than is reasonable. Like a care bear, except totalitarian and like, evil. Theoretically. Which they are, obviously. But you didn't know that.

Now you do. Consider yourself smarted.

[Violet]

Some boards I post on have explicit rules about 'not starting a war' with another message board. <snip> If this has never been a problem here, I could see not having a rule posted, but maybe having one 'at the ready' or just being aware such things might occur would suffice. <snip>

You haven't seen my war face yet. You wouldn't like my war face. This is my war face

Warning: Graphic content. This will literally turn your insides out as every cell in your body begins a process I like to call "voitorreah". Would highly recommend not viewing this image. It will haunt your dreams for the rest of your life. It will also put you on the fast track to dementia. It is, literally, the single most horrifying image of ever produced by man. And I've seen a lot of sick shit in my many many many nonreal but very human lifetimes with the blood and the geysers and lots of blood in general yeah I'm not well. The following content is exceedingly likely to cause cranial hemorrhaging, sharts, and ulcers. It will also give you cancer. That's right. It is so awful it will give you CANCER. If you click this: YOU ARE A MORON! I don't think you really needed that warning, because you probably already know how immensely stupid clicking on this button would be... but just in case you STILL DON'T KNOW: THIS IS MY >MURDER FACE!< This is the last thing you see if you're a very very very bad person. So, do not click this ima-i repeat do not click to reveal this image. For your sanity's sake... and also because I"m pretty sure it'll unleash upon the world THE CURSE held within its very absurdly easily opened packaging. See, this is why I stopped going to church. What's in this image. I couldn't handle it anymore. Tell me, do you know what hell is? HELL IS THIS ! that's right, you understood. OKay. So, repeating: don't be a moron. Good, glad that's covered

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....

....

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As you can see (moron): they have absolutely zero chance of victory, if war should ensue.

And to think... all I have to do.... is show up.... and smile.

[Violet]

Let me break all the rules.  xD

You breaks the rulers... and the nuns? 

They breaks the fingers. 

[surreptitious57]

Now I never read the rules of any forum that I sign up to as there is no reason to
For I am not a troll and I always treat others with basic respect. And that is really
what they are asking. Obviously there is a bit more detail to it though that be the
bones of it essentially. If you be eighteen and full of testosterone you might need
to read them first. Not however if you are as ancient as me. For you should know   
how to interact with other ground apes by then. Even if you are a troll as old as I

A MIND IS LIKE A PARACHUTE : IT DOES WORK UNLESS IT IS OPEN