The Basics:

• Respect each other at all times.
• Keep this site family friendly. No profanity, no sexual content, no illegal activity.
• Don't be a fool, and don't ruin the Black Raven Blog for others.
• Have fun!
• For all of the specifics, see our detailed rules below.

At all times:

• Respect each other at all times. Personal attacks are not permitted under any circumstances. There is no need for name-calling or harassment of any poster. This includes behavior in all areas of Black Ravens blog, including forum posts, blog comments and personal messages. While we encourage lively debate there is no reason for anyone to disrespect a fellow poster's ideas.
• Keep all commentary civil, and be courteous to all. Please watch your tone. Constructive criticism is welcome, but insults directed towards other users or the site staff will not be tolerated. Coarse / insulting / gloating / condescending / snarky language is not allowed under any circumstances. This prohibition also extends to any off color or inappropriate remarks. Sarcasm can be misinterpreted, so be very careful when using it in a post. Please see below for further examples related to tone. Also be cautious when pointing out spelling or grammatical errors; there is usually no need for this, and such corrections often serve to heighten tensions between posters. This especially is true when referring to non-English speakers.
• Do not mock others, including by posting mocking images or smileys / emoticons. Comments such as "worst thread ever" are not permitted.
• Do not “lure” or “bait” others towards rule-breaking behavior. This prohibition applies site-wide. Responding to such “bait” in a manner that violates Black Ravens blog rules is equally inappropriate, and is subject to the same level of punishment.
• No “trolling”. Commenting in a thread or elsewhere on the site in a manner that is likely to provoke an angry response from others is not permitted. Posters should appreciate that in many instances, commentary that would otherwise be appropriate may not be appropriate in a specific thread (i.e., bringing up rumors of alleged cocaine use by a beloved player in a tribute thread dedicated to the memory of that player, etc.)
• Do not "hijack" threads, either by taking them off topic or making them your own personal sounding post. Generally, it is not appropriate to post in the same thread several times in a row to get your point across.
• Do not label fellow posters in a way that is likely to provoke a negative response. Dependent upon context, examples include, but are not limited to, "fake fan", "bandwagon fan", "not a real fan", "hater", "homer", "koolaid drinker", etc.
• No swearing! There is absolutely no need for swearing in any post. If you can't find another way to express your opinion, buy a thesaurus. Any forum post, blog comment or personal message with profanity, masked profanity, abbreviations referring to profanity, or allusions to profanity (i.e., **** or @#$#, etc.), whether or not caught by the blog filter, will be deleted.
• Disparaging comments, stereotypes, or generalizations made in relation to another’s race, gender, ethnicity, religion or sexual preference are not permitted. The use of slurs and similar language related to such categories will result in an immediate suspension and/or ban. It is neither necessary nor appropriate to reference a player's race when commenting on that player's play or role.
• Suggestive content or innuendo, no matter how mild, is not allowed. Do not start posts related to the sexual desirability and/or attractiveness of actors, celebrities, sportscasters, or other public figures. Do not post comments, images or videos that tend to objectify persons, especially on the basis of their gender or physical characteristics. Any post dealing with such content will be deleted.
• Overall try to keep the maturity level of posts up, and keep in mind that this should be a place you want to come back to daily and want to tell your friends about. Crude, sexist, lewd, racist or offensive humor or content is not allowed. Crude nicknames -- i.e., Kobe "The Rapist" Bryant -- are not appropriate.

Further Posting Rules:

• Keep all posts and comments on-topic.
• Do not publish images or video that contain adult content, sexually oriented material, or might otherwise be considered offensive. If linking or posting a video that contains profanity, please clearly note so in your post. Any post containing inappropriate material as noted above will be deleted, with the poster being subject to a warning and/or action against their account.

Links:

• You may insert web, mail and/or ftp links into any post, blog comment or personal message. However, inserting links with the intention of leading somebody to spam, warez, crackz, phishing schemes or any other illegal activity. is absolutely prohibited. Doing so will get you banned from this website and possibly reported to authorities.
• Do not link to any site that contains adult content, sexually oriented material, or might otherwise be considered offensive. Any post containing an inappropriate link will be deleted and the poster will receive a warning and/or adverse action to their account.
• Do not link or cite to sites that allow illegal file-sharing, streaming or broadcasting of copyrighted material.

Starting New Threads:

• Before creating a new topic, please check to make sure it is not posted elsewhere. If a pre-existing thread already exists, feel free to reopen that discussion by posting your opinion. This also includes new topics that are relevant to threads that already exist. (i.e., All game comments belong in the game thread.)
• All new forum threads should be worthy of their own topic. Meaningless/irrelevant threads will be locked or deleted by a moderator.
• Please use descriptive thread titles. Members of the blog should be able to have a general idea about the content of a thread before clicking on it. Try to summarize the topic briefly in the title, and elaborate in the message itself. Do not add false or misleading information just to get attention. An example of a bad subject would be "HELP ME". A good subject might be, "Foo rashes when I do bar". Misleading and/or non-descriptive thread titles will be edited and/or deleted.

The Off Topic Forum:

• “Off Topic” forum, where discussion of topics unrelated to the Pipe Band World are not permitted. Please keep all such discussions confined to this forum to the extent possible. It is not necessary and/or appropriate for posters to enter the Off Topic forum and tell others to confine their discussion.
• While the Celticsblog staff encourages discussion of a wide variety of topics, threads related to certain topics may be locked or deleted at any time because the staff deems them to be of a contentious, inflammatory, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate nature. Decisions related to such threads will solely be in the staff’s discretion.
• Due to the sensitive nature of many of the topics in this forum, please pay extra attention to keeping all commentary civil. Do not use disparaging nicknames for public figures or entities, and do not caricature the arguments of others. Such conduct only serves to inflame discussion, rather than add to it, and is accordingly inappropriate.

The Current Events Forum

• Discussion of politics, religion and current events should be confined to the Current Events Forum, a child board of the Off Topic Forum. Discussion of politics and related subjects on the front page or in the chat room are prohibited at all times.
• Do not engage in partisan attacks, unsupported generalizations, or mockery of opposing viewpoints. All posts must add content to the conversation, and all claims must be supported by facts and/or an argument. Posts such as "Bush sucks!" or "Democrats are leftist Communists!" are not permitted.
• The staff may lock or delete any thread, for any reason. Threads that involve illegal or particularly inflammatory topics, such as legalization of drugs or abortion, will be locked on a preemptive basis. Threads about personal drug use are similarly prohibited. While discussion of other potentially inflammatory topics such as race and religion are allowed, such discussions will be closely monitored. As such, members should tread lightly when discussing such matters.
• Participation in the Current Events Forum is on a discretionary basis. Posting privileges in the forum can be revoked at any time, for any reason. There will be zero tolerance policy for rule-breaking in this forum.
• Violation of site rules within the Current Events Forum will result in automatic and mandatory suspension from that forum. Further discipline, including suspension or banning from Celticsblog on a site-wide basis, will be at the discretion of the staff.
• Any poster who wishes to "opt out" of the Current Events Forum may do so. To disable Current Events posts from showing up in your Latest Forums Topic menu and to disable your access to the forum, contact Roy H., who will remove your access privileges.

Interactions with Black Raven:

• Respect and obey moderators and administrators at all times. Do not challenge a staff member's authority or dare them to ban you; such challenges will result in discipline.
• If a member of the staff asks you to do something that you find objectionable, the proper course of action is to comply, and then write either that staff member or another member of the staff a private message indicating your disagreement, and the basis thereof.
• Do not delete or edit out warnings / staff edits that have been made to your post without staff permission. Doing so is a suspendable offense.
• Please do not comment on discipline received by yourself or other members. Similarly, the staff will not comment on such matters publicly.
• No matter what you may believe to the contrary, it is highly unlikely that anything done on this blog is violating your First Amendment rights. The full text of the First Amendment can be

Failure to abide by these rules may result in the editing, negative moderation or deletion of your post, comment or PM. We reserve the right to suspend and/or ban abusers from the site without prior warning. We reserve the right to change these rules at any time, without notice.