A rose by any other name

[Seamus]

this from atheist forums.org,where I'm known as 'Padraic'

The Gauntlet FAQ
The Gauntlet is a forum created based on a suggestion by padraic and a willingness to compromise on some members' desire to use personal attacks and other members' desire for certain types of theists to be reigned in. The Gauntlet is not a theist only forum. Any forum member who breaks forum rules may be punished and sent here, theist or not. However, all forum members will have posting access in here to talk with the banished members.

How are you banished to The Gauntlet?
A member who receives two or more warnings from the moderators may be sent here. Typically when a member receives many warnings for breaking the rules, they are put on post moderation, however that has now changed and members will be banished here instead. They will be given an opportunity to redeem themselves and regain access to the rest of the forum.

How relaxed are the rules?
The personal attack rule is relaxed into a no flaming rule. While it's okay to toss around an insult, flame wars and deliberate trolling will not be tolerated and will be punished accordingly. Rule breakers are also allowed a little more leeway for preaching, but as long as they do they will not be allowed back into the general forums.

How do I get out of The Gauntlet?
If you can follow the general rules while in The Gauntlet for a week or more the moderators will restore your access. This means you also must be able to counter arguments without resorting to preaching and dismissing arguments without discussion. If you feel you have withstood The Gauntlet for a fair amount of time, you can always petition a moderator for restoration of access by PMing one of us. Otherwise, we will restore access as we see fit.

Why "The Gauntlet"?
The staff see two problems. Some people have a tough time discussing with certain types of theist or without getting extremely frustrated and they find the "No personal attack" rule constricting. Furthermore, some feel that theists are given too much leeway and are allowed to spew religious crap in various thread without really discussing the issues brought up. As an atheist forum, we are primarily for atheists to come here and chat, and while we do invite theists to debate us and challenge our convictions, we will not be talked at with canned arguments from "Answers in Genesis" and have our rebuttals ignored. Long standing theists will not be affected by this new forum unless they deliberately break our forum rules. Ultimately, they are here because they get along with us and actually enter arguments honestly. We have no problem with those types of theists and do not wish to send them here to create an atheists only forum. This forum is meant for punishment for certain types of theists who aggravate the general population, and any atheist who engages in similar bad behavior, (I.e. breaking rules, making wild conspiracy claims without merit) may end up here as well.

Who can post threads in here?
Only rule breakers who have been banished to The Gauntlet may post threads, but any forum member may reply.

Can I insult anyone in here?
Yes and no. While the personal attack rule is relaxed, it is only relaxed for the people in here posting. If there is someone you have a problem with but is still a general member and not posting here, you may not start a thread here just to insult that person, or reply to a thread just to insult. Unless they have posted here directly, you may not break the personal attack rule. This is not a place to mock from afar.

May I freely preach in here?
Yes and no. Rule breakers may be sent here for being overly preachy, and as stated above, the preaching rule is a little relaxed. However this is not a place for new members to get away with preaching. If a general forum member preaches in here while replying to threads, they may soon find that this is the only place they can post.

Can I be banned while in here?
Yes. Trolling, flame wars, and spamming is still not allowed and if these rules are broken you will be banned. Furthermore, banished members who fail to learn how to rationally debate may eventually be banned if the moderators feel that this person will never be able to regain access to the general forum. In general, if a person is banished to The Gauntlet for more than a month, they may be banned at the moderator's discretion.

If you have any questions or suggestions regarding The Gauntlet, please reply to this thread.

[wolty]

@ Seamus, that happened after your suggestion of a fantasy island style format?

It looks a little unmanageable from the outside. I suppose it is a work in progress as well.

[Seamus]

Originally Posted by wolty

@ Seamus, that happened after your suggestion of a fantasy island style format?

It looks a little unmanageable from the outside. I suppose it is a work in progress as well.

Yes.

I think it's a bit unwieldy too,and perhaps a bit heavy handed,but it's a start.

The first person on whom it was tried said "stuff you" and left the forum.

I still think it would be simpler and more honest to simply ban the worst deists.

[wolty]

Originally Posted by Seamus

Yes.

I think it's a bit unwieldy too,and perhaps a bit heavy handed,but it's a start.

Parts of it are ok.

Originally Posted by Seamus

The first person on whom it was tried said "stuff you" and left the forum.

We get that here, just without the 'stuff you' very often.

Originally Posted by Seamus

I still think it would be simpler and more honest to simply ban the worst deists.

Agree.

The personal attack thingy would be hard to police methinks.