Post by The High Commissioner on Dec 28, 2019 11:30:52 GMT
GENERAL SITE RULES
GUIDING PRINCIPLE - RESPECT
RESPECT is everything here. Everyone on The Embassy should be able to participate without concerns about abuse, bullying, etc. This isn't social media - instances of disrespect will be sanctioned.
We're building a community, here: if you're not intending to be respectful, go back to the site you act like that on.
This doesn't mean everyone has to pussyfoot around, though. I expect people to disagree with each other - it's the nature of Dip players to be forthright and have strong opinions.
What it does mean is that disagreement should be controlled. Disagree with a person or a post as much as you like, but do it in a respectful way.
There are three main aspects to showing respect on The Embassy:
In the rules listed below, "content" is any content, materials or information, not including Personal Information, that you upload or post to, or transmit, display, perform or distribute by means of, the The Embassy; "Site Management" refers to any member empowered to act on behalf of the site, whether an Administrator, a Global Moderator, or a Forum Manager.
SITE MANAGEMENT RESERVE THE RIGHT TO UPDATE OR CHANGE THESE RULES AT ANY TIME WITHOUT REFERENCE TO MEMBERS.
When the site's rules are changed, an update will be recorded in post within this thread.
THE EMBASSY AND SITE MANAGEMENT ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONTENT POSTED ON THE SITE. RESPONSIBILITY RESIDES WITH THE MEMBER WHO POSTED THE CONTENT.
While Site Management will make all reasonable effort to prevent breaches to the Host's TOS and maintain the integrity of the site's rules, the site is not legally liable for any content posted.
SITE MANAGEMENT RESERVE THE RIGHT TO TAKE ANY APPROPRIATE ACTION AGAINST MEMBERS WHO BREAK THE SITE'S RULES.
Action will be both appropriate and proportionate.
1. RESPECT THE FORUM
a. No advertising. Any post which is deemed to be advertising will be removed and the poster banned immediately.
(i) Advertising of other Diplomacy sites is allowed as long as it is an appropriate forum and it doesn't break any other site rules.
b. No Spamming. Spam is defined as any post that doesn't have a point, or multiple posts being made on the same subject. The post will be removed and the user warned; repetition will lead to temporary bans and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
c. No trolling. Trolling is defined as posts which raise the same issue repeatedly in multiple threads. The post will be removed and the user warned; repetition will lead to temporary bans and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
d. No flaming. Flaming is defined as any post which seeks to deliberately cause disagreement on the Forum, or otherwise antagonise a member or members of the community. The post will be removed and the user warned; repetition will lead to temporary bans and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
e. Sexual content. Posts which feature sexual content will be removed; the poster will be banned immediately.
f. Profanity. Profanity or obscenities are acceptable. The assumption here is that we're all adults or, at least, mature enough to manage our own language. I don't feel that it is Site Management's responsibility to censor the use of language; what is acceptable to one person may not be acceptable to another.
(i) Extreme or abusive language. If, in the opinion of Site Management, any language used is unnecessarily extreme or breeches the site's rules on personal abuse (see below), the user will warned and the post edited - the user will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(ii) Excessive profanity. If, in the opinion of Site Management, profanity is used excessively, the user will warned and the post edited - the user will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
g. Impersonating Site Management. Members who impersonate or otherwise pretend to be a member of Site Management (pretends to be an Administrator, a Global Moderator, or a Forum Manager) will be immediately banned.
The Embassy does not: (I) GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR USEFULNESS OF ANY THIRD-PARTY INFORMATION ON THE FORUM; OR (II) ADOPT, ENDORSE OR ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OPINION, ADVICE OR STATEMENT MADE BY A THIRD-PARTY BY MEANS OF THE WEBSITE AND SERVICES. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL The Embassy BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE RESULTING FROM YOUR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION OR OTHER CONTENT POSTED ON THE WEBSITE OR TRANSMITTED TO OR BY ANY THIRD-PARTY.
2. RESPECT THE PERSON
a. Personal abuse. Content which is deemed by Site Management to be unacceptably abusive towards a member of the community will be edited - the user will warned and will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(i) As a caveat to this, personal abuse is often subjective. If someone calls me an idiot, I will likely take that as personal abuse... and it probably is. However, does this - on its own - deserve action from Site Management? No. The reason it doesn't is that we all should have some resilience to this kind of thing. Therefore Site Management will view everything of this nature on a case-by-case basis. If this kind of personal abuse it deemed to be repetitive or targeted then action will be taken, as described above.
b. Collective abuse. Content which is deemed by Site Management to be abusive towards gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, or disability will be edited - the user will warned and will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(i) Religion. Religion will be taken as a distinct case. Religion is a choice rather; as such criticism of religion will be acceptable as long as religious terms are not used as personal abuse, or as long as it is not discriminatory or hateful.
c. Gender Neutrality. Members who identify as being gender neutral should not be abused as such. Whether the abuse is personal or collective, posts deemed by site management to be in abusive will be edited - the user will warned and will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(i) Members who identify as being gender neutral may not insist that gender neutral pronouns be employed.
d. Cyber-bullying. Any threats to members, whether on the Forum or threatening members with action on other platforms or in real life, will lead to an immediate ban.
(i) Cyber-bullying will also include attempting to further communicate with another member of the site by Personal Message, email or other off-site method, after being asked to not stop attempting contact.
e. Defamatory content. Any content which is deemed by Site Management to be defamatory will be removed and will result in an immediate ban.
You agree and understand that you may be held legally responsible for damages suffered by other site members or third-parties as the result of your remarks, information, feedback or other content posted or made available on the The Embassy that is deemed defamatory or otherwise legally actionable.
f. Impersonating other members. Anyone who Members impersonates or otherwise pretends to be another member of the site will receive an immediate ban.
g. Phishing. Members who attempt to access or gain control of other members' personal information, or who use any tool to harvest personal information, will receive an immediate ban.
3. REPORTING POSTS
Any member who feels a post is in contravention of site rules should report the post. This is achieved by using the Settings dropdown menu above each post. Members who report posts are required to provide a reason for the post being reported. Each report will be investigated as promptly as possible.
If necessary, Site Management will seek clarification from both the member(s) who reported the post(s) and the member who placed the post. There is no time limit to how long this investigation will take. Any member who does not participate in an investigation will have no right of appeal against a decision (see below).
If Site Management believe no action is required over a reported post, Site Management is under no obligation to discuss this decision further. the member who reported the post may appeal (see below).
4. SANCTIONS
Sanctions are as identified above in sections 1 and 2.
Where the option is given for a member to edit their post(s) themselves, if this is not taken then that member will receive the minimum temporary ban (see below) as a matter of course.
If a member receives a warning, this warning will be communicated by Private Message only. Site Management is under no obligation to discuss this warning further. If a member disagrees with a warning, they may appeal (see below).
If a member has been warned once, a second offence of the same nature will automatically result in a temporary ban.
If a member has received two warnings over different site rules, a third offence will automatically result in a temporary ban.
If a member has a temporary ban, a second temporary ban will be of increased length.
If a member has received two temporary bans, any further action deemed to be in contravention of site rules will lead to a permanent ban.
Temporary bans may last for one week, two weeks, or a month.
YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR INTERACTIONS WITH OTHER The Embassy MEMBERS. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTAND THAT The Embassy HAS NOT, AND DOES NOT, IN ANY WAY: (A) SCREEN ITS MEMBERS; (B) INQUIRE INTO THE BACKGROUNDS OF ITS MEMBERS; OR (C) REVIEW OR VERIFY THE STATEMENTS OF ITS MEMBERS. The Embassy DOES NOT REPRESENT, WARRANT, ENDORSE OR GUARANTEE THE CONDUCT OF ITS MEMBERS. IN NO EVENT SHALL The Embassy BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO ANY MEMBER'S CONDUCT IN CONNECTION WITH SUCH MEMBER'S USE OF THE SERVICES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, BODILY INJURY, PROPERTY DAMAGE, WRONGFUL DEATH, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF PRIVACY OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES RESULTING FROM COMMUNICATIONS OR MEETINGS BETWEEN MEMBERS.
5. APPEALS
Should a member be issued with a permanent ban, no appeal will be held.
If a member feels a decision taken by Site Management is incorrect, they may appeal. All appeals are dealt with by an Administrator. If an Administrator made the original decision they will refer to a different Administrator (if one exists) or the site owner (The High Commissioner).
Appeals are raised by sending a Personal Message. To send a PM, members should follow this procedure:
Alternatively, click on The High Commissioner and send a PM as described above.
The Administrator will deal with the issue by investigating the reports created by the member of Site Management and, if necessary, conduct a further investigation.
Any actions taken from a decision overturned by appeal are not redeemable. Only the sanction will removed from the member's record.
The result of any appeal WILL NOT be discussed further.
GUIDING PRINCIPLE - RESPECT
RESPECT is everything here. Everyone on The Embassy should be able to participate without concerns about abuse, bullying, etc. This isn't social media - instances of disrespect will be sanctioned.
We're building a community, here: if you're not intending to be respectful, go back to the site you act like that on.
This doesn't mean everyone has to pussyfoot around, though. I expect people to disagree with each other - it's the nature of Dip players to be forthright and have strong opinions.
What it does mean is that disagreement should be controlled. Disagree with a person or a post as much as you like, but do it in a respectful way.
There are three main aspects to showing respect on The Embassy:
- Respect for the host's rules.
I really don't need to go into this in any meaningful way because the Hosts do it for me. You can read their Terms of Service and, if you're interested, you can read other information here. - Respect for the site.
I intend to abide by the Host's TOS (see link above) and I don't expect a site member to be putting the site in a position where I may held responsible for breaking those TOS. - Respect for the person.
As indicated above, every member of the site is due respect, whether you agree with them or not. Acute or sustained abuse is not allowed.
In the rules listed below, "content" is any content, materials or information, not including Personal Information, that you upload or post to, or transmit, display, perform or distribute by means of, the The Embassy; "Site Management" refers to any member empowered to act on behalf of the site, whether an Administrator, a Global Moderator, or a Forum Manager.
SITE MANAGEMENT RESERVE THE RIGHT TO UPDATE OR CHANGE THESE RULES AT ANY TIME WITHOUT REFERENCE TO MEMBERS.
When the site's rules are changed, an update will be recorded in post within this thread.
THE EMBASSY AND SITE MANAGEMENT ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONTENT POSTED ON THE SITE. RESPONSIBILITY RESIDES WITH THE MEMBER WHO POSTED THE CONTENT.
While Site Management will make all reasonable effort to prevent breaches to the Host's TOS and maintain the integrity of the site's rules, the site is not legally liable for any content posted.
SITE MANAGEMENT RESERVE THE RIGHT TO TAKE ANY APPROPRIATE ACTION AGAINST MEMBERS WHO BREAK THE SITE'S RULES.
Action will be both appropriate and proportionate.
1. RESPECT THE FORUM
a. No advertising. Any post which is deemed to be advertising will be removed and the poster banned immediately.
(i) Advertising of other Diplomacy sites is allowed as long as it is an appropriate forum and it doesn't break any other site rules.
b. No Spamming. Spam is defined as any post that doesn't have a point, or multiple posts being made on the same subject. The post will be removed and the user warned; repetition will lead to temporary bans and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
c. No trolling. Trolling is defined as posts which raise the same issue repeatedly in multiple threads. The post will be removed and the user warned; repetition will lead to temporary bans and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
d. No flaming. Flaming is defined as any post which seeks to deliberately cause disagreement on the Forum, or otherwise antagonise a member or members of the community. The post will be removed and the user warned; repetition will lead to temporary bans and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
e. Sexual content. Posts which feature sexual content will be removed; the poster will be banned immediately.
f. Profanity. Profanity or obscenities are acceptable. The assumption here is that we're all adults or, at least, mature enough to manage our own language. I don't feel that it is Site Management's responsibility to censor the use of language; what is acceptable to one person may not be acceptable to another.
(i) Extreme or abusive language. If, in the opinion of Site Management, any language used is unnecessarily extreme or breeches the site's rules on personal abuse (see below), the user will warned and the post edited - the user will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(ii) Excessive profanity. If, in the opinion of Site Management, profanity is used excessively, the user will warned and the post edited - the user will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
g. Impersonating Site Management. Members who impersonate or otherwise pretend to be a member of Site Management (pretends to be an Administrator, a Global Moderator, or a Forum Manager) will be immediately banned.
The Embassy does not: (I) GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR USEFULNESS OF ANY THIRD-PARTY INFORMATION ON THE FORUM; OR (II) ADOPT, ENDORSE OR ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OPINION, ADVICE OR STATEMENT MADE BY A THIRD-PARTY BY MEANS OF THE WEBSITE AND SERVICES. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL The Embassy BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE RESULTING FROM YOUR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION OR OTHER CONTENT POSTED ON THE WEBSITE OR TRANSMITTED TO OR BY ANY THIRD-PARTY.
2. RESPECT THE PERSON
a. Personal abuse. Content which is deemed by Site Management to be unacceptably abusive towards a member of the community will be edited - the user will warned and will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(i) As a caveat to this, personal abuse is often subjective. If someone calls me an idiot, I will likely take that as personal abuse... and it probably is. However, does this - on its own - deserve action from Site Management? No. The reason it doesn't is that we all should have some resilience to this kind of thing. Therefore Site Management will view everything of this nature on a case-by-case basis. If this kind of personal abuse it deemed to be repetitive or targeted then action will be taken, as described above.
b. Collective abuse. Content which is deemed by Site Management to be abusive towards gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, or disability will be edited - the user will warned and will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(i) Religion. Religion will be taken as a distinct case. Religion is a choice rather; as such criticism of religion will be acceptable as long as religious terms are not used as personal abuse, or as long as it is not discriminatory or hateful.
c. Gender Neutrality. Members who identify as being gender neutral should not be abused as such. Whether the abuse is personal or collective, posts deemed by site management to be in abusive will be edited - the user will warned and will be given the option of editing the post themselves. If deemed necessary, Site Management will edit or remove the post. Repetition will lead to a temporary ban and, ultimately, a permanent ban.
(i) Members who identify as being gender neutral may not insist that gender neutral pronouns be employed.
d. Cyber-bullying. Any threats to members, whether on the Forum or threatening members with action on other platforms or in real life, will lead to an immediate ban.
(i) Cyber-bullying will also include attempting to further communicate with another member of the site by Personal Message, email or other off-site method, after being asked to not stop attempting contact.
e. Defamatory content. Any content which is deemed by Site Management to be defamatory will be removed and will result in an immediate ban.
You agree and understand that you may be held legally responsible for damages suffered by other site members or third-parties as the result of your remarks, information, feedback or other content posted or made available on the The Embassy that is deemed defamatory or otherwise legally actionable.
f. Impersonating other members. Anyone who Members impersonates or otherwise pretends to be another member of the site will receive an immediate ban.
g. Phishing. Members who attempt to access or gain control of other members' personal information, or who use any tool to harvest personal information, will receive an immediate ban.
3. REPORTING POSTS
Any member who feels a post is in contravention of site rules should report the post. This is achieved by using the Settings dropdown menu above each post. Members who report posts are required to provide a reason for the post being reported. Each report will be investigated as promptly as possible.
If necessary, Site Management will seek clarification from both the member(s) who reported the post(s) and the member who placed the post. There is no time limit to how long this investigation will take. Any member who does not participate in an investigation will have no right of appeal against a decision (see below).
If Site Management believe no action is required over a reported post, Site Management is under no obligation to discuss this decision further. the member who reported the post may appeal (see below).
4. SANCTIONS
Sanctions are as identified above in sections 1 and 2.
Where the option is given for a member to edit their post(s) themselves, if this is not taken then that member will receive the minimum temporary ban (see below) as a matter of course.
If a member receives a warning, this warning will be communicated by Private Message only. Site Management is under no obligation to discuss this warning further. If a member disagrees with a warning, they may appeal (see below).
If a member has been warned once, a second offence of the same nature will automatically result in a temporary ban.
If a member has received two warnings over different site rules, a third offence will automatically result in a temporary ban.
If a member has a temporary ban, a second temporary ban will be of increased length.
If a member has received two temporary bans, any further action deemed to be in contravention of site rules will lead to a permanent ban.
Temporary bans may last for one week, two weeks, or a month.
YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR INTERACTIONS WITH OTHER The Embassy MEMBERS. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTAND THAT The Embassy HAS NOT, AND DOES NOT, IN ANY WAY: (A) SCREEN ITS MEMBERS; (B) INQUIRE INTO THE BACKGROUNDS OF ITS MEMBERS; OR (C) REVIEW OR VERIFY THE STATEMENTS OF ITS MEMBERS. The Embassy DOES NOT REPRESENT, WARRANT, ENDORSE OR GUARANTEE THE CONDUCT OF ITS MEMBERS. IN NO EVENT SHALL The Embassy BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO ANY MEMBER'S CONDUCT IN CONNECTION WITH SUCH MEMBER'S USE OF THE SERVICES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, BODILY INJURY, PROPERTY DAMAGE, WRONGFUL DEATH, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF PRIVACY OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES RESULTING FROM COMMUNICATIONS OR MEETINGS BETWEEN MEMBERS.
5. APPEALS
Should a member be issued with a permanent ban, no appeal will be held.
If a member feels a decision taken by Site Management is incorrect, they may appeal. All appeals are dealt with by an Administrator. If an Administrator made the original decision they will refer to a different Administrator (if one exists) or the site owner (The High Commissioner).
Appeals are raised by sending a Personal Message. To send a PM, members should follow this procedure:
- From the Forum Menu, click on Messages.
- Click on Create Message.
- Under Username enter The High Commissioner.
- In the Subject box, write the title APPEAL.
- In the message box, write a full explanation of why you feel an appeal is necessary.
Alternatively, click on The High Commissioner and send a PM as described above.
The Administrator will deal with the issue by investigating the reports created by the member of Site Management and, if necessary, conduct a further investigation.
Any actions taken from a decision overturned by appeal are not redeemable. Only the sanction will removed from the member's record.
The result of any appeal WILL NOT be discussed further.