Unaware of unwritten rules

I'm one of those people that actually read the forum rules, so I abide by them. I also visit this forum semi regularly just to see what's going on in the site.

I was surprised to see from a post in this forum that "the c- word" is not allowed. I'm just not sure if it's a ban-able offense, or if your post gets deleted, or what the consequences are.

I'm not here to debate whether the word should be allowed, even tho I disagree with it's censoring. I'm just wondering what the consequences are, and why it isn't in the "forum rules". None of the forum rules directly apply to the usage of that word.

Also, are there any other "unwritten rules" that I'm unaware of?

Only under certain circumstances would the C-word be a bannable offense, Newbie. Like if it were directed at another member or under some other circumstance it were part of a directed flame or insult. More often, it's simply a word that, because of its offensive nature, results in the deletion of a thread containing it. You may choose to call that censorship, but this is a privately owned Web forum and rules regarding appropriateness and discretion do apply. I'm not sure why so many people have the idea that they're entitled to free speech under all circumstsances. I suppose you're entitled to it, but in a place like this where the individual owner sets the rules and standards, you also have to live with the consequences of expressing yourself freely if you choose to.

We generally go by the rules of decency here, Newbie. And we use moderator discretion in determining material that is offensive, misogynistic, male-bashing, insulting, inappropriate, or otherwise a problem that reflects negatively on cannabis users and advocates. A good rule of thumb to go by if you're having trouble determining whether some sort of unanticipated rule may jump up and bite you on the butt is whether you'd say it in public, out loud, to someone you didn't know. If the answer is no, then you'd be wise to err on the side of caution.

Oh I definitely agree with abiding by the rules, I don't even use the word personally, but I also never saw it as offensive, nor do I know many people that would be offended by that word, and yet not be offended by generic cursing. Also, if I were to have used that word, I would never have expected to have a thread deleted because of the usage of that word. It's not that I want to use the word, I just never knew, prior to tonight, that there was a rule surrounding it.

I'm just wondering why these extra rules, that aren't necessarily bannable, aren't detailed or documented somewhere as an actual rule. Especially since the only "legal" use of the word that I've seen on the board, is describing and debating it's legality.

I just thought it'd be nice to have the rule somewhere for everyone to see, not halfway down a page that not everyone visits, in a regular person's post. :)

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Originally Posted by birdgirl73

A good rule of thumb to go by if you're having trouble determining whether some sort of unanticipated rule may jump up and bite you on the butt is whether you'd say it in public, out loud, to someone you didn't know. If the answer is no, then you'd be wise to err on the side of caution.

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I can't agree with this as a preventative method, as I wouldn't do a lot of things to complete strangers in public that I do with friends, or even strangers that I'm conversing with. I'd never yell "fuck" or curse at people in general, but cursing as well as the word "fuck" are allowable.

Again, I'm not debating the "legality" of that particular word, just that since it's a fairly hard rule (meaning very few allowable circumstances) it should be posted somewhere, as there are uses for the word that aren't covered in the "forum rules".

You'll have to hear how offensive women find that word sometime, Newbie. The C-word ranks right up there among the most highly offensive, misogynistic words there are.

Again, our formal rules here reflect common decency. No racism. No flaming/insults. No threats of violence. As I said before, we mods are tasked with making judgment calls on plenty of occasions, but we're generally operating under those guidelines, even when we take down a thread that you don't personally see as insulting. Others, including our advertisers, might see it differently, and we're moderating for everyone, not just thread-posters. If we were to try and spell out all the instances of discretionary decisions we sometimes face, the rules would go on for four pages. And as they stand now at 3/4 of a screen, an astonishing percentage of people haven't ever reviewed them.

As for not agreeing that the question of whether or not you'd say something out loud in public to strangers is a good way to determine whether something's appropriate or not, well, that's a shame. Because, of course, this is a public Web forum where you're largely interactng with strangers. The belief that because you have some level of acquaintance with a few or because you're sitting behind the protective anonymity of a computer screen gives you carte blanche to say whatever you might want is a bit scary to me.

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Originally Posted by birdgirl73

If we were to try and spell out all the instances of discretionary decisions we sometimes face, the rules would go on for four pages. And as they stand now at 3/4 of a screen, an astonishing percentage of people haven't ever reviewed them.

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Is there a chance of having a main page with the main infractions, and a second section for rules that, for lack of a word at the moment, not as bad?

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Originally Posted by birdgirl73

As for not agreeing that the question of whether or not you'd say something out loud in public to strangers is a good way to determine whether something's appropriate or not, well, that's a shame. Because, of course, this is a public Web forum where you're largely interactng with strangers. The belief that because you have some level of acquaintance with a few or because you're sitting behind the protective anonymity of a computer screen gives you carte blanche to say whatever you might want is a bit scary to me.

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I think here's where we're mis-interpreting each other. I'm not claiming that I need some sort of anonymity (aside form the fact that this is a cannabis site). I think I handle myself quite decently in real life and on the forums :p

If I'm engaged in conversation with strangers, I'll swear, if we're all adults.

That's different than yelling those same words to strangers, which I wouldn't do, since I'd never just yell (or proclaim loudly) *anything* to a stranger. Following that advice, I wouldn't be conversing the forums.

I just don't want to have my post deleted or banned because a rule I didn't know. I'm not sure how the moderation works and stuff, that's all.

I have never read the rules...but I dont need to cause it is basic human interaction...respect others, talk to them somewhat nice and everything will be A-OK.

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Originally Posted by geonagual

it is basic human interaction...respect others, talk to them somewhat nice and everything will be A-OK.

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Geo has hit the nail on the head.
Respect for the community is a good way to stay out of trouble.

I would like to add to this that we also will do a nuke-n-ban in instances where a member is discussing theft. This has long been the case in cultivation over the issue of stealing lights for growing.

Gang activity of any sort is another thing we DON'T tolerate.

Dealing drugs is also heavily frowned upon. I will PERSONALLY nuke any posts I see that show large quantities of weed and cash together. If that's your game, I don't want to know about it.

When posting, consider that we are a community that is striving to portray a respectable image for our collective cause, and engaging in activites that marginalize cannabis users even further than we already have been is not helpful.

Thanks for everyone's cooperation.

there really is no set consequence for really any rule breaking.... every breaker's punishment is up to the mods disgression.... if you do nothing but cause trouble and have a record of breaking the rules, you'll more than likely be banned once the mods are 'fed up with your shit' so to speak....

as for the rest of us, who pretty much follow the rules, well no one's perfect.... you'll usually get a deletion of post/thread and a warnning, or if it's really high up there (mom talk, flaming) you might get an infraction as well...

so far the only thing i know that merits an instant ban (as in no consideration of their post history and such), is talk of suicide (:( i found out the hard way.. lol)

slip, I'll hand down instant bans to thieves and violent people.
lol just test me.
Hookups are an automatic instant ban, and responding to a hookup solicitation is too.

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Originally Posted by stinkyattic

slip, I'll hand down instant bans to thieves and violent people.
lol just test me.
Hookups are an automatic instant ban, and responding to a hookup solicitation is too.

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well that only started happening recently <.< minus the theif thing.. so it doesn't count! :p

It's all good, slip!
I'm gonna end this now and if any other mods want to chime in, cool.
Just be nice to your fellow man.