![[ Butterfly ]'s avatar](https://a1cdn.gaiaonline.com/dress-up/avatar/ava/4d/0c/68f3aee4100c4d_flip.png?t=1155672690_3.00_00)
LO, MORTALS. TAKE HEED:
WE ARE YOUR MODS, AND WE GIVE UNTO YE THESE 11 COMMANDMENTS.
WE ARE YOUR MODS, AND WE GIVE UNTO YE THESE 11 COMMANDMENTS.
Kidding, kidding. Seriously, though, let's be honest - this is a political guild, and things can get pretty heated when it comes to debating politics. The following rules are here to keep things civil.
1. No flamewars. Stick to debates and speeches for now.
2. Respect the other members and their views. We're all part of the same Guild, and we're all here because of an interest in Politics. Respect what they have to say and they'll respect what you have to say. Think of it as Freedom of Speech: you may not like/agree with what they say, but if they can't say what they want to say, you can't say what you want to say. Freedom of Speech.
3. This shouldn't even need to be stated, but...keep to Gaia's ToS at all times.
4. Don't put words in people's mouths. While a bit of simplification can be necessary for really long posts, rewriting them into a strawman/removing important context is extremely annoying and adds nothing to the thread.
5. Don't gloat. This comes into a effect mostly during elections: if the candidate you voted/rooted for won, don't rub it in the other side's face. Again, mutual respect: you wouldn't want them doing that to you, would you?
6. Don't be stupidly partisan. Pretty simple. Don't think because you're a Republican and they're a Democrat that you have to hate them. They may have different political views, but they're still people. You'd be suprised; sometimes even members of "opposite" parties have the same views on something.
7. As a corollary to #6, don't discriminate against anyone for any reason. Whether it is race, gender, religion, I don't care. Just don't do it. It's not "cool", it doesn't help your point, and it's on the edge of trolling.
8. When we say "political debate", we don't just mean one specific country. The U.S. is discussed a lot because a lot of Gaians live in the U.S., but anything political IS ALLOWED!
9. There are currently three "Party Stickies"; unless you have explicit permission from one of the mods, do not post in any sticky but your own.
10. Willful lying will not, under any circumstance, be tolerated. Stating different opinions is one thing (in fact, the most important thing). But knowingly lying about proven facts is an automatic strike. If you are mistaken, admit your mistake. Immature "debating" will not be permitted within the guild. Continued willful lying after you've been factually proven wrong is a full two-strike offense.
11. Trolling will also not be tolerated. If you are consistently spewing incindiary bullshit and/or lies because "it's funny" or "First Amendment protection", you will be rained down upon with great vengence and fury. Where the Hell do you think you are? You will be assumed to be a previously unrecognized admissions error, and will be dealt with accordingly.
While the rules don't change often, they are subject to change as-needed. The thread will be bumped whenever there's a change, so make sure to check!
Note: My brother, Drewser, is my equal in this Guild. We basically created it together and you will treat him with the same respect you treat me. I am Democratic, he is Republican. This also makes it much more fair to everyone and evens it out. You disrespect him, you disrespect me.
- [ Butterfly ]
Howdy, kids. I came by and edited this whole thing for clarity, then combined some rules that were pretty much the same. Yay for me!
--A_L_R, the prettiest mod of all
