Laying Down The Law, Falcoholic Style

by Dave Choate on Dec 15, 2008 11:27 PM EST in Editorial

Alright kiddos.

There's been an increase in the amount of strident discussion here at the site as of late. I'm more than cool with people disagreeing, and I'm always impressed at your ability to work things out without me having to bash your darling little heads together. Still, I feel a need to summon up the ol' Falcoholic charter so you guys can get a refresher.

Don't be a jerk. This is pretty self-explanatory. It means no name-calling, no being stupid for the sake of being stupid, and no demeaning other people and their beliefs. A certain amount of friction is natural in any blog community, but I've been on the razor's edge of enforcing for the past few weeks. I'm going to start warning people who are crossing the line, and we'll go from there.
Don't like the Saints, Bucs or Panthers. Unless you're a visiting fan from one of those teams. Otherwise, it just ain't cool.
Don't use caps lock all the time. BECAUSE YOUR POINT ISN'T THAT IMPORTANT!
Keep the cussin' to a dull roar. Inventing words is a lot more fun. Everybody gets a couple in the game threads, when necessary.
Don't pimp your blog. Ask politely for a link. This applies only to those who come on here to start trouble or link themselves. I'm fine with linking to any Falcons site that wants me to, but there's a right and a wrong way to go about it.
Do comment often. That means you, lurkers. I know there's many who simply read here and some will never comment. I understand that. The rest of you should come join the discussion, because we have some great threads going here at all times.

It's really a pretty short list, and 99% of the time everyone's adhering to it. The Falcoholic is a better community than I ever dared to hope, and I'm hoping that we'll keep growing at our slow but steady rate. I'd love more traffic, but I wouldn't trade in the level of discourse here for 100,000 page views a day. I just want to continue to improve the site, and I can't do that if everyone spends their days squabbling.

Leave your thoughts in the comments.

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Comments

"Ut oh! Daddy done haveta whip dat belt out!"

I’m hoping that we’ll keep growing at our slow but steady rate

I have a feeling memberships will pick up in the next few months. I know the season isn’t over yet but I’m already starting to feel those pre-draft rumbles. I have a feeling we’ll have a lot of (to use a football term) rookies joining the fray come next season. After this electrifying season and all the potential this team has, how can we not gain more members?

"The nice thing about supporting a bedraggled-cum-decent team? Watching all those analysts eat their words."

by Adam Schultz on Dec 15, 2008 11:44 PM EST reply actions

There's nothing wrong with disagreeing...

But lately it’s not always done respectfully, like gentlemen. The best thing about The Falcoholic is that the level of discussion is civilized and intelligent. Try going over to AJC.com and check out their Falcons blog entries. It is absolutely appalling how abusive and ignorant the tone is there, nobody wants that!

When people get confrontational and argumentative no one benefits, they only breed dislike for each other. When we actually discuss topics in a mature and considerate manner, we can actually can learn things and enjoy ourselves in the process!

Sorry if I sound preachy, I know I’m no saint myself. Let’s keep our good thing going here, “It’s easy if you try”. Cheers, and best wishes to you all.

by tom slick on Dec 16, 2008 1:03 AM EST reply actions

We all should invent a new word come next open thread

That seems to be an enjoyable part of my Sundays when watching the Falcons.

http://hobnailboot.blogspot.com/

by AuditDawg on Dec 16, 2008 11:53 AM EST reply actions

I'mma finally use

doodleflatch.

"The nice thing about supporting a bedraggled-cum-decent team? Watching all those analysts eat their words."

by Adam Schultz on Dec 16, 2008 12:03 PM EST up reply actions

This is my home

I remember when the day I joined the Falcoholic. I wanted to migrate from my old stomping grounds, FalconsLIFE on the official site, due to the amount of jerks there (I counted at least 10 of them on the “Thank you Alge Crumpler” post).

by da fatchick thrilla on Dec 16, 2008 2:51 PM EST reply actions

I joined at the beginning of the season

and its the best move i ever made. I just learned about blogging about a month before that. The information i find here is the most informative without all the arguments and name calling. I haven’t noticed any personal attacks here or any bad feelings being expressed.

I am PROUD to be a Falcoholic.

by Funballad on Dec 16, 2008 4:58 PM EST reply actions

Guilty

So I know DTF was staring at me when he mentioned the saucy lingo I used to title a post after the Bears game (can you blame though?). I for one will pledge to end the filth-flarn-flarn-filth.

In a way, each of us has an El Guapo to face.

by runningback on Dec 16, 2008 8:53 PM EST reply actions

Cosby reference.

points

lawlz.

"The nice thing about supporting a bedraggled-cum-decent team? Watching all those analysts eat their words."

by Adam Schultz on Dec 16, 2008 10:19 PM EST up reply actions

Who WASN'T fired up after the Bears game?

A little cussin’ is infinitely more understandable than being a raging Corn Chute. The Bears game was the early turning point of our season IMO.

by tom slick on Dec 17, 2008 2:52 AM EST up reply actions

The subsequent title however

more than made up for the saucy lingo. I haven’t laughed that hard in a while.

If my mother put on a helmet and shoulder pads and a uniform that wasn't the same as the one I was wearing, I'd run over her if she was in my way. And I love my mother.
-Bo Jackson

by Pregame with Pabst on Dec 17, 2008 3:52 PM EST up reply actions