SI Board Rules

[A.E]

We're getting a lot of new members lately and I think this is a good time to highlight and re-iterate

SI's Board Rules.

Here at Sportz Insomnia, we pride ourselves on the close-knit and friendly atmosphere that has existed since our forum came to life in January of 2006. With a hard principle of "love thy neighbor", our environment continues to strive on the good principles enforced by our Staff and adhered to by our Members.

As a member of the SI Community, it is your responsibility to take the time to read through the following rules, enforce them within yourself and when dealing with those around you.

1. RESPECT - We've all heard the phrase: "you have to give it to get it", something that remains true in any type of interaction. Members respecting each other is a huge deal at SI. We do not tolerate any disrespect towards other members or staff. Its unreasonable for us to expect everyone to like each other but we do require the utmost respect from everyone towards everyone, at all times.

2. DEBATING - Debating is a wheel at SI that continues to keep us turning. As a sports forum that includes many different types of people, fans and opinions, we are 100% devoted to keeping the debating alive and strong. We do not however, permit the debating to become side-tracked and cross the line of becoming personal attacks or cheap shots at other members. When debating anything at SI, be sure to stay on topic and never allow your disagreeing with another member to become an argument fueled on personal hatred.

3. NAME-CALLING - SI does have a sense of a humor and many of us have become comrades who know each other all too well. That said, there is a difference in friends busting on friends, in a humerus manner...and members just outright insulting and name-calling on other members. We can all sense the difference in the two situations and we will not tolerate name-calling or insults as a result of arguing or personal hatred towards other members, or comments made by other members. Call somebody a name or get personal...and your warning level will rise right away.

4. ADVERTISING - SI knows that building relationships with other sites and other forums helps to add traffic and improve visibility. At SI, we feature several affiliates from all over the web and are always open to adding more. That said, know that we have a specific application process required for any other site or forum's advertising to appear on SI. We do not tolerate any advertising of other sites or forums at any time, to include: banners, links, mention in threads, sigs, etc. We are sharp to the sneaky methods other forums use to advertise their site in other places. Just know that if your caught advertising without proper approval, your link disappears and so do you. This policy of course excludes any major sports network sites (nfl.com, espn.com), or sites that we all refer to in making posts (youtube, myspace).
Affiliate application can be found here: http://www.sportzin....p?showtopic=308

5. RACE - We bring this up because it has been a problem in the past and discussion on race is a part of life. There are times where news and/or stories may cause a debate on race and we understand that. Be aware that this is a delicate subject and always think about your comments before you post them. In other words, SI features a community made up of members from all different walks of life. Though we don't prohibit any topics that may have a subject surrounding a racial manner, we will not prohibit any racism, bigotry or racist comments...period. There is a very fine line on this manner and at the end of the day, the Staff decides if you crossed that line, not you.

6. FOUL LANGUAGE - This is a "big boy" Sports Forum and we understand that sometimes our emotions can dictate our choice in terminology. SI isn't a Church Forum and the occasional cuss word is not a big deal. At the same time, SI isn't a drunken Sailor Forum so frequent or excessive cursing is prohibited. You should already know if your the type of person who swears way too much but if not, the staff will let you know. SI features filters that censor foul language...and they are here for a reason. Using mis-spellings and/or special characters to get around our foul language filters is prohibited. Lets keep the foul language to a huge minimum, act like educated individuals and use better choice words in descriptions.

7. THE LOUNGE - The Community Thread is a chance for Members to shy away from the Sports talk and discuss anything else in the World today. Whether it be movies, music, news, or help with life's problems...we welcome it. All we ask is that every rule is followed no matter which sub-forum you happen to find yourself posting in. Especially in the Community Thread, all rules still apply, respect at all times or the Staff will take action.

8. GRAPHICS - The rules regarding the SI Graphics section are pretty cut & dry. To avoid any issues, all we ask is that nobody does anything plagiarizing and when offering up criticism, keep it constructive.

9. STAFF - SI features some of the most dedicated and helpful Staff members you'll find anywhere. Our Staff works hard to keep a high visibility, help out Members with anything and ensure the order is kept. We ask that you please respect the Staff at all times and understand that whatever the Staff decides is final. If your actions result in disciplinary action from a Staff Member, keep in mind that the Staff is just during their job and its your actions that put you in the predicament in the first place. As previously stated, only the Staff decides when the rules have been broken and when disciplinary action needs to be taken. The SI Staff features: Moderators, Global Moderators and Administrators.

10. WARNING SYSTEM - SI uses the Warning System as a type of punishment for any violations of our site rules. We use increments of 25% per warning and each level warrants the disciplinary action taken by the Staff.

- 25% = Verbal warning
- 50% = Final verbal warning
- 75% = 7 day suspension
- 100% = Banned

As per SI Staff policy, members will be notified via PM whenever their Warning level is increased. Members will also be notified via eMail whenever a suspension or ban is warranted. Just know that the Staff reserves the right to increase a member's warning level by more than 25% at time, if the situation calls for it.

Thank you for taking the time to read our rules and welcome to our community. A little motivation, an opinion and an open mind will take anybody far here. We have a very well structured environment and those who have been around long enough call each other "friends". Stick with SI, give us a chance, mingle in with the rest of the Community & it wont take long to see why Sportz Insomnia has been around for so long. -SI Staff

I'm seeing a lot of rule-breaking going on as of late and getting a lot of complaints from members about other members. There should be none of these Old Member vs. New Member clashes, nor should any debates have to resort in personal insults, attacking, and/or name-calling. It's immature, it's always uncalled for, and it makes SI look bad. You're conduct always outweighs activity meaning, no matter how active you may be...you are NOT above the rules.

I have no tolerance for trolls, baiters, or eThugs. If you can't post at SI and follow the rules at the same time, then enjoy your short stay. If all you want to do is troll and start playground bickering, let me know and I'll send you to a site where all the bullcrap is encouraged & celebrated.

Bottom line: We've got a rich history and a lot of great members that helped bring this place to where it is and/or maintain it for so long. At the same time, we've got a lot of new members that are proving very knowledgeable and very valuable. Nobody is saying that anybody has to get along but the good of the site is always our top priority. All the bulljive stop right now. The 25x4 warning system is going to be used, no breaks, no exceptions, and people will get banned if they simply don't stop. I am not calling anyone out, I don't need anyone to feel singled out, just take all this in and go enjoy yourself at SI.

We have a great community that just got bigger. The sky is the limit people but in order to continue to grow, we need to continue our rich trend of acting like adults and remembering that, agree or disagree, we are all members of the same great community.