Help:Rules for Appropriate Debate
From Mac Guides
These rules and guidelines describe the acceptable and unacceptable ways to participate in a discussion in a MacRumors forum thread. These rules augment and clarify the general Forum Rules. Guidelines indicate the spirit of the rules. The Rules for Appropriate Debate are especially applicable to threads where there are strong or conflicting opinions, such as certain types of news and rumors discussions and debates in the Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum.
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Respect
Guidelines: Show respect for your fellow posters. Expect and accept that other users may have strongly held opinions that differ from yours.
Rules:
- Name-calling. Name-calling falls into the category of insults and will be treated as such according to the forum rules, your own opinion about another member notwithstanding. You can't call a bigot a bigot, a troll a troll, or a fanboy a fanboy, any more than you can call an idiot an idiot. You can disagree with the content of another member's statement or give your evidence or opinion to dispute their claims, but you may not make a negative personal characterization about that member.
- Insults. Slurs and insults against groups of people based on negative-stereotyping and obvious generalizations fall into the category of trolling and will be treated as such.
- Taunting. Mocking or taunting another forum member is not acceptable. Posts that ridicule another member or obviously exaggerate or misstate their views may be removed.
Debate
Guidelines: Be willing to engage in fact-based, constructive debate. Look for ways to inform and learn from others.
Rules:
- Sources. If you make claims of fact but don't cite sources when requested, the posts may be removed. If you started the thread then the thread may be closed or removed.
- Repetition. If you repeat the same claims without adding new information, the posts may be removed. If you started the thread then the thread may be closed or removed.
- Trolling. Posts that appear to be designed to cause argument or irritate rather than contribute to a constructive discussion are considered trolling and will be treated as such.
- Duplicate discussions. If a new thread repeats a topic that has been previously discussed or debated, without basis for a separate discussion, the thread may be closed, removed, or merged into an earlier thread on the same topic. A news report on a previously discussed issue doesn't automatically deserve a new thread.
Moderation
Guidelines: Stay within the forum rules to preserve your membership privileges.
Rules:
- Reporting. Members should report posts to call the moderators' attention to troublesome posts/posters.
- Responsibility. Each member is held responsible for their own posts and for nobody else's posts. "I was goaded into breaking the rules" is not an excuse. If you think a post is inappropriate, report it, ignore it, and/or respond without breaking the rules.
- Suspensions. Forum members whose posts are removed for violating these rules may be subject to temporary or permanent account suspension (bans), particularly for repeated or serious rules violations.
Questions?
If the rules aren't clear, ask for clarification before posting. You can ask privately using the Contact form or participate in the public discussion about the Rules for Appropriate Debate in the announcement thread.
You can post general comments or questions about forum rules and policies in the Site and Forum Feedback forum. However, for any specific instance of moderation or member discipline use the Contact form instead.
