The PaganPath Forum is a potpourri of individuals who range from bold-and-brassy to quiet and soft-spoken. There are elders here, and there are beginners here. There are individuals here from many different Pagan Paths. There are individuals here who have not labeled their path. By following these rules, the Forum can remain a "safe place" for the shy sage, the bold beginner, and everyone else. Please respect each other and be nice.
By registering and participating in the PaganPath Forum, you agree to be honor bound to these rules. Forum policies are not up for vote or public discussion on the Forum.
You agree to be bound by the Law of Threefold Returns if you behave dishonorably towards PaganPath, its Members, visitors, owners or administrators. Violation of these rules may result in legal action and/or banning for a period of time, the length of which depends on the severity of the offense. Lifetime bans are issued for violating rule #1, and sometimes rule #4.
You vow that you are motivated to participate in this Forum for purely honorable and positive reasons and are not here for the sole purpose of undermining the community on this site or the Pagan community at large.
You pledge that you are not someone who is here to recruit others to your specific religion or spiritual path, and that you are not someone who has been banned from the Forum in the past, or are not here on behalf of such persons.
A special note for PaganPath.com Dues Paying Members: Due to the interactive nature of the Forum, you agree when you voluntarily register, that you will not allow any occurrences on the Forum to affect your Membership status. The Members Area of the site is separate from the Forum. Opinions expressed on the Forum should not affect your enjoyment of the many other Members" Area features. Refunds of membership dues cannot be based on conflicts which may arise through the Forum.
If the time should ever come for your path to part ways with the Forum or the site, you agree that you will leave with respect and honor, will not defame PaganPath and will not encourage others to leave with you.
Rule #1: You Must Be 14 Years of Age or Older.
Rule #2: Don't Use the Forum to Track Down People
If it has been a while since you saw someone who used to frequent the Forum, do not use the Forum to inquire about this person, and especially do not discuss the missing person in Forum topics!
If a person is missing, please remember that this person has had every opportunity to contact you directly through PM (private messages), email or any of numerous other means to inform you of their whereabouts.
This policy is in place because PaganPath does not subscribe to a dropout control policy. People are free to come and go as they please and we do not try to prevent or return them to PaganPath by any means. It is also improper etiquette to discuss a person who is not present.
Rule #3: Keep Your Signature Reasonable
Your signature may be less than or equal to 240 characters, including spaces.Do not change the font size or color in your signature. Plain text only.
If you must use a smiley or emoticon, please use only one, and select a regular sized one like a simple smile, not an elaborate or animated type.
Links and URLs belong in your profile under "Website" or "Interests" not in your signature.
Rule #4: Respecting Rights & Etiquette:
Specifically: Don't post statements that are false, defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, racially offensive, threatening, intentionally offensive, invasive of a person's privacy, or otherwise violate any law or infringe or violate another party's rights (including, but not limited to, intellectual property rights, religious freedoms, and rights of privacy and publicity). Please refrain from highly controversial, off-topic subjects including: Politics, Gun Laws, Drug Laws and Abortion. Please write legibly, avoiding ALL CAPS and text message type abbreviations such as R U 2 goin 2 concrt?
Rule #4 Clarification:Don't Post Someone Else's Words! You will not post copyrighted material, trademarks, or other proprietary information belonging to anyone other than yourself. All works are automatically copyrighted under current laws even if they do not contain the copyright sign © and date. In simple terms, If you didn't write it, don't post it.
The Forum is backed by the personal financial contributions of the owners of PaganPath and dues paying Members of PaganPath. Because of this we ask you to respect those responsible for providing this service to you.
Specifically: No Links, Ads, Solicitations or Recruiting: This includes: placing personal ads or using the Forum as a dating service; repeatedly dropping links for your site or any site you are affiliated with; repeatedly requesting to be emailed privately; recruiting Forumites to your particular path, web site, group, mailing list, etc.; encouraging people to visit other web sites in hopes to discourage them from enjoying PaganPath; recruiting students for classes; attempting to use the Forum to generate traffic to your site, requesting Forumites to participate in polls and surveys without permission from the Forum Administrators, using private contact features such as email forms or private messaging services to spread false, defamatory, or libelous statements regarding PaganPath. Collecting email addresses or soliciting private contact from Forum members for private, commercial, or any other purpose is expressly forbidden.
Do not use your real name or any other person's real name, even if it has been provided to you by the individual. You may only refer to yourself or others on the Forum by usernames.
Rule #5: Use at Your Own Risk:
We do not vouch for or warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any message, and are not responsible for the contents of any message. The messages express the views and opinions of their respective authors and are not necessarily reflective of PaganPath.com or others associated with the Forum. Such information should not necessarily be relied upon. Individual authors are solely responsible for such content. Statements made on PaganPath.com, have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Any information or product found on PaganPath is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Consult a qualified health care practitioner if you are suffering from any physical or mental disorder. If you find a message objectionable, contact a moderator or administrator.
Rule #6: Deletions, Indemnity, Limitation of Liability:
Although we cannot be held responsible for the content of any of messages, PaganPath.com reserves the right to delete any message or user registration for any or no reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your messages, and you agree to indemnify and hold harmless PaganPath.com, and its agents with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s) and release PaganPath.com and its owners of any liability. PaganPath.com also reserves the right to reveal your identity in the event of legal action arising from any message posted by you.
Rule #7: Applicable Laws & Venue:
By accessing the Forum, both you and PaganPath.com agree that the statutes and laws of the State of Nebraska, without regard to conflicts of laws principles thereof, will apply to all matters arising from or relating to use of the Forum, except where preempted by the federal laws of the United States of America, in which case such U.S. federal law will apply. You and PaganPath.com also agree and hereby submit to the exclusive personal jurisdiction and venue of any state court in the State of Nebraska, with respect to such matters. Those who choose to access the Forum from outside the United States do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws.
Rule #8: Maintaining the Atmosphere:
The PaganPath Forum has been around since 1997 because we insist on maintaining the benefits of online communication. We appreciate the ability to have anonymous interaction that allows us to forget age, gender, race, etc., to truly connect on an intellectual and spiritual level. To maintain this, we must insist that you do not post pictures of yourself anywhere on the Forum. You must also choose from the Emblems (avatars) we provide and cannot upload your own. Please respect this rule, it has allowed PaganPath to be a safe refuge from the many hundreds of similar forums, newsgroups and mailing lists out there. If you do know the gender of another participant, please do not reveal this to others even if it is to correct a reference to that person in a forum post. You are discouraged from revealing your age, gender, race and other details that even in a loving Pagan community may subconsciously result in "isms" such as ageism, sexism, racism. If you cannot separate your identity from your gender, or are looking for a dating service, please look elsewhere.
