Defending Big D is intended to feel primarily democratic, and most of the unwritten rules come by way of self-government by the community. These few official guidelines have been created and exist for a singular purpose: to help make DBD a place that is safe and enjoyable for everyone who participates. However, I would also like to remind you that DBD is my home on the Internet. Just as you wouldn’t go as a guest to someone else’s physical home and throw dirt all over the walls, please be respectful as a guest in my online home, both to me and to the other guests here.

Free Speech on DBD

At BCB, I believe strongly in free speech and in having a diversity of people participating, and sharing ideas that are relevant to the community. As a DBD member you are, in general, free to express your opinion without fear of retribution. The diversity of personalities, beliefs, and styles is exactly what will make DBD the strong and vibrant community that I want it to become. As proprietor of this site, I want to keep DBD free and open to everyone. However, I will remind you of what you all agree to when you first sign up for the site:

When posting at this blog, please follow this one simple rule: Before hitting "post" to post your remarks, ask yourself: "Would I be embarrassed to say this in front of strangers who were physically present in the room with me and could respond to my face?" If the answer is "yes," then don't post. DBD encourages and welcomes all opinions, no matter how strong; however, personal attacks, vulgarity, and other uncivilized forms of expression are not welcome.

Under normal circumstances I will not delete posts, and will not "censor" in any way, shape or form unless it is a blatant violation of these guidelines. However, in such cases, I reserve the right to delete posts without notice.

Since DBD IS a community, you should know that free speech does not mean the right to say what you want, when you want, how you want, without being sensitive to, and respectful towards, individuals and the community as a whole. In a community, speech is not completely free; it comes with responsibility.

The following are simply not acceptable on DBD (excepting, in some cases, for obvious humor between people with an existing rapport) and are subject to sanction as outlined below:

1. Gratuitous profanity is not permitted. I realize that in the heat of a game thread, occasional blue language may slip through. Please try to keep it to an absolute minimum.
2. Creating multiple user names for the purpose of trolling or disrupting the community is not permitted. Persons creating such user names will have those names banned and/or deleted without notice. Similarly, posts made for such purposes will also be subject to deletion without notice.
3. Posts created for the sole purpose of advertising or other commercial purposes will be deleted without notice.
4. Personal attacks on community members, directly or through sarcasm/belittling, e.g., "You're an idiot", "You don't know what you’re talking about, moron", "Apparently, you've never seen a hockey game, or you'd know?", "My Chihuahua knows more about hockey than you do", etc.
5. Comments that are intolerant or prejudiced (sexist, racist, homophobic, etc.) in nature, e.g., "Why don't you go play with your dolls?", "The Stars shouldn’t sign black players", "Doesn't Ribeiro look like a fag?", etc.
6. Harassing/Baiting of users, e.g., "The Stars will never win this game" posted 10 times in 3 minutes, etc.
7. Comments that bring politics into DBD (which is a non-political blog), e.g., "Obama/Bush/Clinton ruined this country by", "Check out this link about the war in Iraq," etc. That said, you may occasionally see a political advertisement on DBD. Running such ads does not imply an endorsement of the candidate or views expressed in the ad, just as any such ad on a television station or network or in a newspaper does not imply endorsement by such an entity. Editorial and advertising at DBD are separate, and I do not have control over advertising.

Consequences for Violating DBD's Community Guidelines

Complaints about possible violations of the Community Guidelines should be directed to Brandon for review and consideration. My email address is prominently posted on the left sidebar. Feel free to contact me at any time.

I will aim to balance a high tolerance for the importance of free speech and low tolerance for minor or petty complaints, with enforcement of the stated guidelines on behalf of the entire DBD community. Here is the general procedure; there may be exceptions to this, at my sole discretion:

If you think a violation has occurred, either contact me, flag the post, or mention it in the thread. I will then contact the offending user privately, either by email or by issuing a formal warning on the site. No other action will be taken.

If a second violation is made by the same user, I reserve the right to take more serious action, up to and including a temporary ban (i.e., asking you to stay away for a few days).

A third violation through this process means some sort of action will definitely be taken. That might be as simple as another temporary ban -- or, it might result in you being permanently banned from DBD.

If it seems clear to me that you have as your primary motive disrupting and/or upsetting specific individuals or the community as a whole. In that case, as noted above, I reserve the right to ban you before going through this process.

Procedure For Lodging An Official Complaint

If you believe a user has violated these guidelines and you want me to have a look at the situation, send an email to the address on the left sidebar, and also flag the post using the tools available on the site itself. Please include the following information:

• Your DBD user name
• The DBD user name of the user about whom you are complaining
• The URL(s) of the post(s) in question

The last part is really important – this is a busy site, and if you can direct me directly by URL to the specific post you are making a complaint about, that makes dealing with it much easier. I’ll try to get back to you and at least let you know I received your complaint.

Finally, please don't take any of these guidelines to mean that I am "clamping the hammer down" or any such thing. As noted above, DBD is intended to be a place for freewheeling exchange of ideas about the Stars and hockeyl. Almost anything goes, if you are respectful of others.

FanPosts and FanShots

The guidelines for posting a FanPost are:

• A FanPost must be at least 75 words long or it is considered to be unsubstantial and will not be accepted by the site.
• A FanPost must in some way belong on DBD -- in other words, it must relate to the Stars, or to hockeyl, or to DBD, or to an existing thread, etc.
• If you feel you must post something off topic, prelude your post title with "OT-".
  
• It is not permitted to use FanPosts, FanShots, comments or signatures for advertising. Anything posted in a FanPost, FanShot, comment or signature that contains commercial advertising is subject to deletion without notice.

Tips on writing good posts:

Some of the qualities that the most popular FanPosts often have in common are:

• They expand upon the main idea with supporting examples, or statistical data, or a link to a relevant article, or a "thinking question" for others to consider, etc. -- something beyond just the main idea itself. Don’t just post a large quote from an article and say "What do you think?" Post your own opinion, too.
• They explore a topic, idea, or question that has not been explored recently, or at all, at DBD. Please check both the FanPost and FanShot recent post lists to see if your topic is already being discussed.

Keep in mind that if your post contains only one point or idea that is not developed, expanded on, or supported with arguments or data, it is really not a FanPost -- it is a comment that should be posted in an existing thread, or posted as a FanShot. For more information on how to construct your posts, please see this post containing some suggestions and ideas on FanPosts and FanShots.

Disclaimer: These guidelines are intended to help you understand the policies, procedures, and processes generally used by me at DBD. While you are using DBD, which is a part of SB Nation, you are also subject to the SB Nation Terms of Use. Also, please take note of the SB Nation Privacy Policy, to which this site subscribes. Both of the above links are also available at the bottom of DBD's front page. Finally, it is entirely at my discretion as to how to interpret and implement these guidelines, which are subject to change at any time without notice.