Message Board Posting Rules

[Chaps]

1. Personal attacks are NOT tolerated. It is possible to disagree without personally insulting fellow posters. Doing so shows poor character and reflects badly on yourself. There is a fine line between attacking a post and attacking the person, and the moderators will be forced to decide if the comment is personal. Any personal attacks, as determined by the moderating team, will be removed and disciplinary action will be taken.

3 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 2 Ban

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2. Rider player attacks are NOT tolerated. This includes players, coaches, and other people involved with the team. Criticism is acceptable, insults are not. You don't have to like a certain player but you do have to show respect. These same people you are attacking are reading this forum...and they're bigger than you. Any player attacks, as determined by the moderating team, will be removed and disciplinary action will be taken.

2 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 3 Ban

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3. Profanity is filtered. Any attempts to avoid the filter is against the rules. Complete masking of profanity is tolerable, while partial masking is unacceptable. For example, "****" is forgiveable, "sh*t" is not. If it is noticed by the moderating team that a user is constantly using profanity in ANY way (avoiding filter, full or partial masking), disciplinary action will be taken.

1 point - expires in 6 months

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4. Personal rumours, especially those that are sensitive or potentially defamatory, about Rider players and personnel that is not of general knowledge are NOT tolerated. For example, saying "*player X* was at the bar last night and was smoking dope and hitting on every girl there", is not acceptable. Comments like that are not generally known by the public, and could damage reputation. That is not what this forum is about. Personal rumours, as determined by the moderating team, will be removed and disciplinary action will be taken.

3 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 2 Ban

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5. Professional rumours are allowed, but are regulated. If you have a rumour you want to post, it MUST BE ACCOMPANIED by the following:

• The title of the thread MUST begin with "RUMOUR:" in capital letters.
• The source of the rumour MUST be stated. The post MUST begin with "Source:" and state the source no matter how reliable it may be. This may be as ideal as a link to the source, or a simple as "I heard it from a friend," but it MUST be stated.

Any posted rumours that do not meet the above requirements will be removed, and disciplinary action may be taken by the moderating team if this becomes a trend.

2 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 3 Ban

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6. "Trolling" and "fishing" is not tolerated. "Trolling" or "fishing" by definition, means to make a post that goes against the grain, not because it is a true opinion, but to get a negative reaction and cause a disruption to the forum. Any trolling or fishing, as determined by the moderating team, will be removed and disciplinary action will be taken.

4 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 2 Ban

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7. Threads which do not relate to football, as determined by the moderating team, will be moved without notice from the Main Forum to The Lounge.

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8. Fans of all teams are allowed to post here. However, please realize you are in Rider territory and you may read things about your team that you do not like. Thoughtful discussion is encouraged from other fans. Opposing fans who fall into Rule #6 will face disciplinary action.

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9. Posters are encouraged to help with moderation of this forum. In every post, at the top right hand corner, you will see a clickable button: . If you find that a certain post has broken the rules stated above, please use that link and enter your reason and state the Rule Number that has been broken. Doing so makes a post in the Moderator Forum for the moderators to look at the offending post and decide if action should be taken.

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10. Disciplinary action taken is only of concern to the moderator and the person the action was taken against. The moderators do not need to explain their actions to the forum membership as a whole but only to the person in question. If the person in question does not agree with the decision, they should Private Message one of the Moderators with a CIVIL and RESPECTFUL reason as to why they disagree. If the rebuttal is abrasive or public (posting in the forum), it will be ignored, and further action may be considered. This rule applies not only to the infracted person, but also to any users who make a mockery of the decision in the public forum. As stated, action is between the moderators and the infracted. Any posts made by the infracted member OR by others complaining about the ban, asking for an explanation, for reinstatment or mocking the mods for the infraction may result in points or a ban.

5 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 1 Ban

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11. There will be zero tolerance on public attacks of any mods on the forums. Riderfans moderators volunteer their time to keep this forum civil and decent so that all members can enjoy themselves here. Therefore, they should will able to do their jobs without being attacked, mocked or having accusations made about them in public in the forum. If you have a concern to discuss in a respectful manner, use PM or the Contact Us feature.

5 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 1 Ban

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12. Use of the PM (private message) or e-mail system for the purpose of attacking a fellow poster is not tolerated. The PM and e-mail systems reside on this forum and on the same server and thus are under the same rules. Please report to a moderator with evidence if you feel the PM or e-mail system is being abused.

5 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 1 Ban

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13. Drawing excessive attention to your posts and threads is not acceptable. Use of colours, bolding, italics, all caps, etc is allowed, but in moderation. If a users posts are continuously all coloured, bolded, etc, proper action will be taken by the moderators. Also, adding stars or other symbols to thread titles continuously is not allowed. Use of such tactics is okay for very important topics and in moderation.

1 point - expires in 3 months

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14. Before creating a new thread, be sure to look and confirm that no similar threads are already created. If there are, post in them - do not start a new thread. If multiple threads are posting on the same topic, the threads may be merged together by the moderators. We don't like doing this as it makes the threads hard to follow, so please check first.

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15. If you ask to be banned...you will get your wish. Too many times people decide to make snide comments to the mods or dare them to ban them. This wish will be granted with a short ban.

5 points - expires in 6 months PLUS Sev 1 Ban

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16. If you earn 10 points, you are automatically banned. You will stay banned until enough points expire to bring you under 10 points. The point totals and expiration dates are NOT set in stone, and may be adjusted to reflect the situation. We have posted the points and expiry dates simply as a guideline.

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17 Posting of "For Sale" items or advertisng for personal profit is not allowed anywhere except for the Classified Ads forum. For-profit businesses may not use the general forums for advertising their products or services. If you are interested in advertising to the users of Riderfans.com, please view the Extra Point > Advertise on RiderFans from the main page as advertising is available for such purposes. Non-profit organizations may post their services or events, but it would be appreciated if you contact us before making such a post.

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18. Agendas will not be tolerated. We not need people making this place their personal outlet for their beliefs. This includes, but is not limited to: politics, religion, football operations, other posters, etc. If it is determined that you contribute nothing to the community than to further your agenda, you will be removed.

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19. Attempts to circumvent a ban by creating a new profile is not allowed. The first time someone is caught doing this will result in a one month ban. A second offense will result in a permanent ban.

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20a. Members may post avatars and signature lines of their own choosing. We reserve the right to request that any personal data that is displayed and deemed to be inappropriate or excessive in file size be removed and/or changed. The maximum file size allowed for avatars is 100 kilobytes. The maximum file size allowed for signature lines is 150 kilobytes. These file sizes are capped to ensure page loading is as fast as possible for all members. Failure to comply may result in an infraction.

20b.. Members have the option to donate $25.00 annually to Riderfans to access an ad-free forum. In addition, you have the ability to add pictures to your signature line. Please note that as of January 1, 2010, signature lines and pictures must be for personal expression only and not to advertise or promote in any way shape or form. The ONLY exception to this will be to promote an approved charitable event (please contact RF administration to discuss approval of charitable promotion). If you are interested in the ad-free option, please contact a Riderfans administrator.

21. Articles from paid sites or subscription sites cannot be copy and pasted here. We can run into legal issues that are not worth dealing with

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22. Our list of rules, no matter how extensive, cannot cover every possible circumstance that may arise. Therefore, moderators will take action on any circumstance they deem uncivil to our community, whether it can be properly categorized in one of the above rules or not.

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23. Finally, have fun. Remember that we are all here for one common reason: we are CFL fans. As a tip to all, before hitting the submit button, think to yourself: "Would I say this to his/her face?" If the answer is no, it might be a good idea to not say it to him/her at all. Remember, there is a good chance you might meet this person some day, and friends are better than enemies. Also note that you can edit and delete your own posts. Please read your post once you have posted it. If you feel it has broken a rule, for your own sake, edit it before the moderators find it. Self-moderation will ensure a happy and long posting life here.

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Bottom Line: Be civil with each other, don't be an ***, and you will live a long and happy life here.


SEVERITY BANS
Sev 1 - Instant 7 day ban.
Sev 2 - Instant 3 day ban.
Sev 3 - Instant 1 day ban.