Rules and Guidelines for Coffee Break Forum Threads and Posts

RoxaneB

Change Agent and Data Storyteller
Super Moderator
Posting Specifics for Coffee Break Threads

The political, religious, and (debatable) humour threads never bothered me. To me it was just a case of 'move on'. I was raised to believe there are three things to never be discussed at work: politics, religion, and pay cheques. So, on occasion, yes, I'd skim those threads but my contribution was more lurker than involved.

The humour thread was good for me, though. Okay, the carrot/woman pic was crossing the line in my opinion, but I admit to laughing - shaking my head at the same time, though - and moving right along.

So...my thoughts on rules/guidelines:

  1. Profanity will not be tolerated - applies to the whole Cove.
  2. Content is to be "clean" - unfortunately, this does imply that a moderator will be required to remove questionable material, with notices being sent to the offending person(s). Think before you post - would you want your 15 year old child seeing what you're about to post?
  3. Three strike rule applies - should you be emailed three times re: postings, you will be removed from the Cove.
  4. Discussion is allowed - not insults. We all have our opinions on topics, but there is no need to sling mud.
  5. Should a moderator ask you to cease posting re: a certain topic, please do so. Take it outside - i.e., continue your conversation along another line of communication if you wish, but not within the Cove.
  6. If a thread is closed/deleted, do not contact the moderator - the moderator will post an announcement explaining why.

Sample topics:
  • Humour - no x-rated material, no discriminatory material (guess this means no redneck humour, no newfie jokes from the Canucks, no blonde jokes)
  • Announcements - charities, births, weddings, celebrations
  • Hobbies & Sports
  • Work
  • Social Scene

But with everything, there is still the possibility for some people to be offended. Take the Hobbies thread. Many of you enjoy hunting and/or collecting guns. My personal opinion is 180 degrees away from that, but that does not mean that you should not have the right to enjoy your recreational activities. So, I choose to not get involved in those discussions. I will not blast you for enjoying something I do not.

This is part of the wonders of humanity. We're a diverse species. We talk about world peace in the Coffee Break forum and yet now face the possibility of losing our "social scene" because of vastly differing views on some topics.

It is too bad that we might lose this forum. It was a wonderful tool to help show the personable side of our field. We could tout our vast knowledge in one forum, and be human in this one. It was a nice break from the craziness that goes in my life and I know that I will be sad to see it go.
 
D

David Hartman

RCBeyette said:
  1. Profanity will not be tolerated - applies to the whole Cove.
  2. Content is to be "clean" - unfortunately, this does imply that a moderator will be required to remove questionable material, with notices being sent to the offending person(s). Think before you post - would you want your 15 year old child seeing what you're about to post?
  3. Three strike rule applies - should you be emailed three times re: postings, you will be removed from the Cove.
  4. Discussion is allowed - not insults. We all have our opinions on topics, but there is no need to sling mud.
  5. Should a moderator ask you to cease posting re: a certain topic, please do so. Take it outside - i.e., continue your conversation along another line of communication if you wish, but not within the Cove.
  6. If a thread is closed/deleted, do not contact the moderator - the moderator will post an announcement explaining why.

Sample topics:
  • Humour - no x-rated material, no discriminatory material (guess this means no redneck humour, no newfie jokes from the Canucks, no blonde jokes)
  • Announcements - charities, births, weddings, celebrations
  • Hobbies & Sports
  • Work
  • Social Scene

I think these lists are a good beginnning. I do see room for a few qualifiers/clarifications such as:

"Profanity will not be tolerated" - I have no problem with this, but do question if the use of profanity modified by characters is to be allowed (and to what degree if so) such as: He!!, d@mn, or simply &*%$#. I typically will not be using any of these, but when rules are being made I believe that we should be specific.

"Discussion is allowed - not insults" - Once again I agree, but by insult do we mean "Energy, you need to have your tired old eyes looked at." or "Only an idiot would publish such a diatribe without any supporting evidence"?

"Humor - no x-rated material" - With the possible exception of the Nosmo beach scene I don't believe that we have seen any x-rated material on the site, perhaps we need to be more specific to no allow any material containing images of either breasts, bottoms, or exposed pelvic regions, and possibly include written "off-color"/REDACTED materials as well.

"Announcements" should include a cry for help so to speak, as in: "My daughter is in the hospital, etc."

These are just some of my thoughts.

I too would hate to lose this area, I believe that the "professional" areas benefit by us being able to get a better understanding of who we are as individuals at the "watering hole". :bigwave: :agree:
 
E

energy

Outstanding

RC,

Great post. For once, I have nothing to add. My suggestions would pale by comparisan. I would green dot you, but alas, I can't. :agree:
 
E

energy

My opinion...

ddhartma said:
I think these lists are a good beginnning. I do see room for a few qualifiers/clarifications such as:

"Discussion is allowed - not insults" - Once again I agree, but by insult do we mean "Energy, you need to have your tired old eyes looked at."

I wouldn't take it as such, from you :vfunny:

ddhartma said:
or "Only an idiot would publish such a diatribe without any supporting evidence"?

Yes. That shows contempt for the post, leaving no doubt that he/she was being called an idiot. I think that RC's list is excellent. As for REDACTED content, Including pics, if we keep in mind that a good test of a post's acceptability is whether we would show it to a young daughter or son. It's a no brainer. :agree:
 

Mike S.

Happy to be Alive
Trusted Information Resource
RC, since you did not include it, I assume you would outlaw "politics and religion" per se. But if "social scene" is not more clearly defined I see it easily going to politics or religion. Maybe someone in the social scene thread says, "Did you see Madonna and Britney kiss"? Someone is bound to say "that's morally wrong according to the Bible" and maybe someone else will say, "Do you think Arnold was groping women?" and suddenly it's political.

Our politics and religion (or lack thereof) are so much a part of us it is hard to just ignore it or refuse to admit that it guides many of our business and interpersonal interactions. Where do you draw the line?
 

RoxaneB

Change Agent and Data Storyteller
Super Moderator
Mike S. said:
RC, since you did not include it, I assume you would outlaw "politics and religion" per se. But if "social scene" is not more clearly defined I see it easily going to politics or religion. Maybe someone in the social scene thread says, "Did you see Madonna and Britney kiss"? Someone is bound to say "that's morally wrong according to the Bible" and maybe someone else will say, "Do you think Arnold was groping women?" and suddenly it's political.

Our politics and religion (or lack thereof) are so much a part of us it is hard to just ignore it or refuse to admit that it guides many of our business and interpersonal interactions. Where do you draw the line?


Beginning list and obviously subject to modification. I don't mind the "Politics and Religion" thread...but it is usually not an area I venture into. Most of my time logging into the Cove is while I am at work and I profess to feeling somewhat guilty if I was to start broadcasting my own personal beliefs. Okay, every now and then I do post (such as in the Legalizing Drugs thread), but it's not my number 1, Must Read, of the day.

I have no problem if people wish to discuss a topic such as Madonna/Britney. Some people don't mind it. Some find it offense. Discuss. State your view. Debate the differences. But keep it clean! There is no need to insult the other person's parentage or discuss which reality they live in. And should the thread degrade that level, it's time for the moderator to step in.

As a facilitator, I will do my best to keep a meeting going on topic. There is no need for slandering the person across the table. There is no need to debase someone else's opinion. We are here to learn not only more about our jobs, but each other. Life would be dull if we all had the same opinions for every topic.

There are many things discussed at work that can affect how I interact with someone, but I do my best to try and keep the conversation neutral. If that is not possible, I deal with the person on a professional level only...no need to interract outside of work. We're all adults here...most of the time. ;)

Our differences are what make us unique.
 

RoxaneB

Change Agent and Data Storyteller
Super Moderator
energy said:
RC,

Great post. For once, I have nothing to add. My suggestions would pale by comparisan. I would green dot you, but alas, I can't. :agree:

It's the thought that counts. Here...I'll put a green dot on the base of monitor and know that it comes from you. :)
 
E

energy

Absolutely

Mike S. said:
RC, since you did not include it, I assume you would outlaw "politics and religion" per se. But if "social scene" is not more clearly defined I see it easily going to politics or religion. Maybe someone in the social scene thread says, "Did you see Madonna and Britney kiss"? Someone is bound to say "that's morally wrong according to the Bible" and maybe someone else will say, "Do you think Arnold was groping women?" and suddenly it's political.

Our politics and religion (or lack thereof) are so much a part of us it is hard to just ignore it or refuse to admit that it guides many of our business and interpersonal interactions. Where do you draw the line?

As you can see, the Political and Religious threads are gone. As soon as a thread begins to reflect either, it's gone. I think we all know when someone is making a political or religious statement. I mean, everybody here is a professional and will know the rules. Simple. In your examples regarding Britney and Maddona kissing, why would anybody solicit opinions? Is it an important issue for the Social scene? Arnold groping women is both political and REDACTED. It isn't, IMO, worth a post. It also runs the risk of disappearing and reflecting on the member's intentions. I'll stop here. :)
 

RoxaneB

Change Agent and Data Storyteller
Super Moderator
ddhartma said:
"Profanity will not be tolerated" - I have no problem with this, but do question if the use of profanity modified by characters is to be allowed (and to what degree if so) such as: He!!, d@mn, or simply &*%$#. I typically will not be using any of these, but when rules are being made I believe that we should be specific.

Good point! Typically, I too do not use the symbols, but their usage does not bother me. However, use of the f-word (with or without symbols) will not be tolerated. I would like to hear other people's opinions on this, though. I do know that crass language (stated directly or implied) can be offensive to some people. I also know that using the Lord's name - JC or just C - can be seriously offensive to many people. Add it to the list.

ddhartma said:
"Discussion is allowed - not insults" - Once again I agree, but by insult do we mean "Energy, you need to have your tired old eyes looked at." or "Only an idiot would publish such a diatribe without any supporting evidence"?

Again, thank you for bringing up the distinction between the two. As Energy said, obviously the second is more insulting. Then again, context...a very subjective area. Perhaps, adding a emoticon after the first would help distinguish it from being a true insult? I know that some people in the Cove have very dry senses of humour, bordering on sarcasm, but which can be, in some cases, perceived to be insulting. Just recently, I read a post stating something along the lines of "Do you know anything about ISO ABCD?" IMO, there was no need for that. The person (a) is new to the Cove, (b) may be new to ISO ABCD (although I doubt that by the profile), (c) does not speak English as a first language (possible communication issue here), and/or (d) just asked a question, looking for some assistance (the response about just doing a search would have been sufficient). However, I'm rather used to those kinds of posts from some people, so I filter the material out while reading and home in on the important stuff. But I digress...

ddhartma said:
"Humor - no x-rated material" - With the possible exception of the Nosmo beach scene I don't believe that we have seen any x-rated material on the site, perhaps we need to be more specific to no allow any material containing images of either breasts, bottoms, or exposed pelvic regions, and possibly include written "off-color"/REDACTED materials as well.

Female breasts or do men's count to? I'll tell Lucinda to put away the Chippendale pic she was about to post. ;) Good description, though. "Humour - no off-colour/REDACTED materials" Too bad we need to state this. As I said before, I log on from work and I assume the majority of the Covers do, as well. Our company would have a fit if we were found to have such material on our computers.

ddhartma said:
"Announcements" should include a cry for help so to speak, as in: "My daughter is in the hospital, etc."

Good idea!

ddhartma said:
These are just some of my thoughts.

I too would hate to lose this area, I believe that the "professional" areas benefit by us being able to get a better understanding of who we are as individuals at the "watering hole".

And they're great thoughts! Green dot for ya!
 
E

energy

I've been told

RCBeyette said:
Good point! Typically, I too do not use the symbols, but their usage does not bother me. However, use of the f-word (with or without symbols) will not be tolerated. I would like to hear other people's opinions on this, though. I do know that crass language (stated directly or implied) can be offensive to some people. I also know that using the Lord's name - JC or just C - can be seriously offensive to many people. Add it to the list.

I have been told to stop swearing in my posts, even though I never actually spelled out the whole word. They were intended to by-pass the software's ability to filter out the offensive words. So, let's consider it swearing. Again, a no brainer. If we want these threads to exist outside the Business/Quality threads, I would use this one simple test. If I have to wonder if my post is approaching an area that we all agree that is off limits, it probably is. Re-word it or bite your fingers and move on to something else. We can throw all kinds of "supposes" into the mix and never reach a concensus. I can't believe there isn't anybody out here that doesn't know the difference between an acceptable post and a troublesome post, now that the lines have been drawn in the sand. I think we are close to that goal of putting them in concrete. As Marc has said, in so many words, "Time's a wasting."
 
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