Community Guidelines

Amazin' Avenue is a place that encourages free discussion about the Mets, or any other topic in applicable threads. That said, we have many new users here at Amazin' Avenue who may not know what's considered acceptable. The basic rule that had adorned the Community Guidelines section for a long time was "Be kind."

Thanks to MookieTheCat and MetsFan4Decades, we have a new set of Community Guidelines. They are exactly that—guidelines—and should be used to help you determine if you should really publish the comment you're about the post. We want all members to feel included, and part of that is maintaining a healthy community atmosphere.

DOs

• Rely on fact-based analysis. This is not a stats-first site; it's a facts-first site. Intellectual honesty means being accountable for your assertions, so if you're going to argue a point you better be sure you have the evidence to support it. This also means that it’s perfectly fine—and even encouraged—to say "You know what? You’re right and I was wrong." Admitting when you've been mistaken—or when you simply don't know the answer to something—is the foundation of scientific discovery. Maybe that's aggrandizing "baseball chatter" a bit, but they're nevertheless important principles to adopt.
• Be emotional in the gamethreads, but don't check your rationality at the door. We all get caught up in the moment, but do try to be insightful if at all possible.
• Ask questions. If you don't understand something, ask questions. If you don't believe what someone is saying, ask questions. If you simply want to continue (or start) a discussion, ask questions.
• Treat others with respect if they have earned it. Not everyone deserves your respect, but take the high road if at all possible. Assume the best of people here: If there are two ways to read a comment, assume the most charitable reading.
• Use the subject line when posting a comment.
• Remember that many of the writers and others who help out with this site volunteer their time and energy. Feel free to critique, but be constructive in those critiques.
• Welcome newbies. We were all new to the community at one time, so let's not lose sight of our beginnings. The community grows by being inclusive, respectful, and welcoming.

DON'Ts

• No discussion of politics or religion, period.
• No personal attacks.
• No posting or discussion of illegal streams.
• Don't wish injury on another player, team, or poster. It's not acceptable.
• No racist, sexist, or any other hate speech or slurs of any kind. What constitutes offensive or hate speech, or trolling, will be determined by the site operators and moderators at their discretion.
• No abusive or overly vulgar language.
• Don't post sexually suggestive or crude images. This includes swimsuit pics, suggestive photos of anyone’s significant others, mothers, etc.
• No trolling or spamming.
• Don't rely on tired baseball platitudes to make your point. If your comment/FanPost is indistinguishable from a random talk radio call or incoherent tweet, please don't post it.
• Don't post links to your own blog/site in the FanShots, unless you contribute something editorially (and usefully so) to the post as well. FanShots are for linking to relevant articles, images, videos, etc. that the rest of the community will find interesting; they are not intended to be free advertising for your website.
• Don't post gigantic pictures or malformed links in the comments.
• Don't carry arguments or grudges from one thread to another. Let it go.
• Don't flag a comment unless you sincerely believe that it is in violation of these rules. We take comment flags very seriously. Every time you flag a comment, a real person has to take time out of their day to check it out. Flagging as a joke or because you disagree with someone is not appropriate.

Our policy here has never been one of pro-banning. Other sites operate differently, but we've always trusted the community to police itself. Those who contribute meaningfully to the discourse are respected by others and are made to feel welcome here. Those who contribute nothing of substance are quickly marginalized and forgotten. We can continue in this way as long as we "be kind."