Moderation Guidelines - Please Read

We're creating new moderation accounts for our moderators that separate out their daily personalities from their moderation duties. We're doing this, in part, so that the moderation isn't confused with a moderator's personal views. Our moderators do their best to be objective, no matter what their personal opinions.

We're striving to make TF Metals Report a positive community where mutual support and constructive dialogue takes precedence over the destructive flaming you may see at other sites. With that in mind, please remember: This site is not a free-for-all. It is moderated to keep it civil and useful. By posting here, you agree to follow the community guidelines (https://www.tfmetalsreport.com/community-guidelines). We've outlined the following moderation rules so you have a better idea of what tools the moderators may use: 1. MOVING THREADS TO THE FORUMS. The blog comments are not meant to be the "catch all" for any and all discussion. The moderators may, at their discretion, request that certain topics be moved to the forums. While we will allow for some topic drift in the blog, controversial off-topic discussions especially may be directed to the forums. This is not "censorship." It's simply the equivalent of asking the baseball team to take their game out to the diamond, instead of trying to do it inside in the bowling alley. 2. ACCOUNT TIME-OUT OR ADVANCE MODERATION. Occasionally, we have had to put members on a "time-out" or may in the future set a member's posts to "moderated." The member will get a warning via PM usually before being put on "time-out," unless the moderators deem the member to be so out of hand as to warrant immediate time-out. We have a "three strikes" policy, meaning, if you have been put on time-out two times already, then we may, at our discretion, shut the account down at strike three. However, there may be times that an account is shut down before strike three. *This would only happen on very rare occasions and is not typical* (except for spammers, who are dealt with swiftly). The moderators will always try to communicate with the member first before any drastic action is taken. The following behaviors are likely to get a warning or time-out: * Excessive flaming. * Posting while intoxicated and causing disruption. * Repeated off-topic posting despite requests to move the subject into the appropriate thread or forum. * Flaming the moderator when the moderator tries to take care of off-topic discussions or flames. Community members who have been contributing positively for an extended length of time will get more leeway (if, for example, they are just having a "bad day") than those who have been brief community members and immediately cause disruption. Important Note: There have been folks who repeatedly flame the moderator when the moderator is simply trying to take care of an inflammatory thread. Do not add fuel to the fire by flaming the moderator in the same thread - any feedback on moderation should go to the Site Feedback forum (https://www.tfmetalsreport.com/forums/site-feedback-and-comments). When a member repeatedly flames the moderator, who is simply attempting to get a thread back on track, they are making the moderator's job very difficult. This is why we may need to put that member on "time-out" so they can cool down and give the thread some breathing room. Flaming the moderator hampers the moderator's efforts to get a thread back on track, and if left unchecked, could blow up the thread even more. 3. SPAMMING AND ASTROTURFING. Anyone who spams the forums or comments will immediately have their account suspended. Impersonating someone or "astroturfing" (i.e. a paid commenter who is trying to promote an agenda on the site) can also result in suspension. We also have the ability to monitor IP addresses of members, and if we see suspicious activity by accounts all coming from the same IP address (usually spam), then we may ban the IP address entirely. 4. MODERATION FEEDBACK AND APPEAL. Please post moderation feedback to the Site Feedback forum or use the contact form. You can also contact the moderators via PM. As noted above, flaming the moderator in the middle of a thread could be grounds for an account time-out. The moderators strive very hard to be fair and balanced in moderation, but it's not uncommon for people to mistakenly confuse moderation of "one side" as evidence that the moderator is trying to "silence" a viewpoint. No, this is not the case. If "one side" is being moderated, it is because they are violating community guidelines - i.e., attacking and flaming instead of discussing things civilly. 5. THE MODERATORS ARE NOT HERE TO SUPPORT YOUR PERSONAL AGENDA. The moderators are not here to shut down people who "offend" you because they may hold an opinion you don't like (everyone has different thresholds of "offense"). The moderators are also not here to promote your particular worldview. Please do not abuse the flagging system to highlight posts you don't like, just because you disagree with someone's perspective. The moderators are also not here to change the titles of forum topics or edit posts just because you don't like how someone else worded something. All that said, moderators are happy to help and will endeavor to do so if asked nicely. Some moderators update running forum topics to keep the top post "fresh" for members trying to provide information. It is up to the individual moderator as to whether they want to help out, and how much time they have to give. ... A final note: We regularly get comments from people who share how much they appreciate that TF Metals Report is a place for civil discussion without all the crass behavior seen elsewhere on the web. We believe this is due to the general high quality of people who come to visit, as well as Turd's leadership. It is also made possible due to moderation. So please appreciate your moderator. They volunteer their time to help make the site a friendly place. Thank you!