ABOUT CATHOLICS DISCUSSION POLICIES

[About Catholics Team]

About Catholics Discussion Policies

The following applies to all users of the About Catholics forum. Please read carefully.

Everyone is welcome to join this community non-Catholic and Catholic alike which includes non-Christians. Each person is an especially important aspect of the community and we welcome all perspectives (just not rude attitudes).

1. Read all rules and policies carefully, thoroughly and regularly because they are subject to change without notice and it is each users responsibility to stay current with the changes. By registering a user agrees to these rules and policies.
2. Be civil. This means no name-calling, no insulting other members, no inappropriate language, no false accusations.
3. Discuss, not debate. There are plenty of debate boards. This is more of a question and answer discussion board. We explain what the Catholic Church teaches and why. We endeavor to help you understand and, once you do, we have fulfilled the site’s mission. You are free to disagree but this is not the place for a debate or thoughtless, anti-Catholic rhetoric.
4. Be understanding. Many times a thread will come down to two opposing views, neither of which seems to be willing to agree with the other side. It is times like these where posters generally come to the agreement to “Agree to Disagree.”
5. Only post once and no cross-posting. This means you should try not to post the same question or response multiple times and in multiple forums. Occasionally someone’s browser will mess up and post a question twice in a row. If that is the case then edit that post to let members know it was a mistake.
6. Avoid using all-caps. In the age of the internet this means someone is YELLING. This comes back to point #1: being nice.
7. For general internet etiquette please see: http://www.albion.com/netiquette.
8. The following are required of users upon registration:
9. A valid e-mail address.
10. An acceptable user name (see rule #1).
11. If the user is a member of the clergy from an non-Catholic faith (meaning one not in communion with the Holy See) then please identify yourself as such either in your user name or profile.
12. Screen name changes will not be allowed, period. Please choose your screen name carefully upon registration.
13. This forum will not be used for any level of illegal activites nor the propagation of them.
14. All users agree to not hold responsible About Catholics for any damage, libel, or loss of any sort at any time attributed to any actions taken place by any user of this forum.
15. Anything posted on this forum becomes the property of About Catholics and may be used for future use explicitly by About Catholics. If anyone wishes to use the material in this forum commercially it must conform with our Use Policy.
16. Private information is to be respected. Private areas of the forum are to be respected as well, but are subject to moderation if a violation of the law or rules of this forum is suspected.

Moderation Policy

The moderators are in charge of adjudicating civility. They volunteer their time to keep this a fun and friendly place. The following is our moderating procedures:

• When a thread goes through a circular argument, comes down to agree-to-disagree, or otherwise ceases to present new information, lock it.
• Lock any threads that are started to continue a closed thread unless new information is presented (we usually let it go a few posts to gauge it).
• If you have a question or comment about a moderator’s action, message him or her. If he or she is unhelpful, message the administrator.
• Spam is not tolerated. Spam will be deleted, the user account will be deleted, and an IP ban may be put in place.

Moderator FAQ’s

My post was moved. What happened and why?
We move posts when they’re in the wrong forum and typically leave a shadow topic (link in the same forum) so those who were following the discussion in the initial forum can continue to engage in it. Usually if it was moved, it was either in the wrong forum, or there was a better forum for it.

I have a problem with a certain moderator, is there anything I can do?
Yes, talk to them. Send a Private Message (PM) to the moderator with which you are having difficulty. The moderator’s are kind, understanding people. If you feel the situation has not been resolved then contact us. Make sure to include all discourse with the moderator.

How do the mods decide which posts/threads to close?
Sometimes it will be easy to tell when a thread will be closed. For example, if there are personal attacks between members, then the thread that contains them will almost certainly be closed down. Other times, it’s not so easy to tell. Each mod uses his or her own judgment based on the board policies, and will close a thread when he or she decides it is required.

Can I become a moderator?
Moderators are appointed by the board administrator when he feels that more mods are needed. If you want to become a mod you have to demonstrate in your posts that you can be fair and objective about things. Also it is helpful to have been posting on a regular basis and have a good feel for the board. Do not ask to be a mod; it won’t help you.

I think a certain poster should be banned, what can I do about it?
If you absolutely feel that somebody should be banned (for repeated rudeness or inappropriate postings), PM a moderator about it. If they agree with you, they will report this to the board administrator and let him make the final decision.

Questions and concerns can be e-mailed to [email protected].

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