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The Rat Ring Formal Debate Forum Moderated forum for formal debates/discussions. If you would like to have a formal, moderated debate, make a proposal in the proposals forum. |
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04-24-2008, 10:25 AM | #42342 / #1 |
Finding Things Out
Mod: ASS, LSD, Phys Sci
: Dec 1969
: 31,476
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PLEASE READ FIRST: Rat Ring Rules and Procedures
I. Introduction
Welcome to The Rat Ring! A goal of the Talk Rational discussion board is to provide an environment for intellectually stimulating debate and discussion of religious, political, philosophical, moral and social issues. The following Discussion forums, Philosophy, Evolution and Origins, Science/Skepticism, Secular Issues, Politics and Religions, all provide venues that are conducive to this goal. These forums, however, may not be suitable if members prefer more rules, structure or restrictions. Some members may prefer one-on-one debates without interference from other members. Some may prefer to have more time to reflect on an answer to an argument while ensured that the intended recipient is still following the thread. The goal of The Rat Ring is to accommodate these preferences in the form of formal debates or discussions. The Rat Ring forums are divided into two areas: The Rat Ring Proposals forum for setting up proposals for formal debates/discussions and The Rat Ring where the actual formal debates/discussions take place. The rules and procedures for these forums are described below in detail. II. Rat Ring Proposals forum The Rat Ring Proposals forum serves two purposes. First, it provides a venue for participants to declare challenges or invitations for formal debates/discussions. Second, once a challenge or invitation has been answered, the participants go on to construct and clarify mutually acceptable parameters. The proposals forum is not where the actual debate/discussion of the topic takes place; this takes place in The Rat Ring. Declaring a challenge or invitation can take the form of "calling out" another member or declaring it open to anyone who might be interested in getting involved. Any member is welcome to declare or respond to a challenge/invitation. Other members, not involved in a challenge/invitation, can participate in proposal threads provided that they are contributing relevant comments and suggestions. *Rat Ring Proposals Tip*A. Formal Debates/Discussions setup A formal debate occurs when two participants who assert opposing positions wish to challenge each other's evidence or logic with substantive criticism and defenses. A formal discussion, by contrast, is not necessarily as antagonistic. It can be based on things such as a comparison of differing perspectives, an educational conversation between a layperson and an expert or some other form of less confrontational dialogue. A formal debate/discussion must be constructed according to the following eight parameters: (1) Topic/resolutionThese parameters are explained as follows: (1) Topic/resolution:B. Official Approval and Amendments Once the participants have agreed to all of the parameters (each participant will be be asked to confirm the final details), and the parameters meet the moderators' approval, the proposal thread will be closed and a new thread will be set up in The Rat Ring on the designated start date. Please note that a participant can only take part in one formal debate/discussion at a time, although he or she is free to set up the parameters for future debates. Participants may make a request to the moderators to amend a formal debate/discussion parameter during the course of the debate/discussion, but the change requires the consent of all involved parties. III. The Rat Ring A. Basic Procedures The Rat Ring is where the actual formal debates/discussions take place. As noted previously, after participants have finalized their parameters in the Rat Ring Proposals forum, the moderator will set up a debate/discussion thread in The Rat Ring on the designated start date. Only moderators are able to start threads in The Rat Ring. After the formal debate/discussion thread is set up, the participant going first may post his or her opening statement (or both participants if the debate/discussion is concurrent). A formal/debate discussion will end when the all of the rounds have been completed. If a participant forfeits or withdraws from a formal debate/discussion, then his or her opponent will be granted the opportunity to make a concluding statement for the last word. The Rat Ring is fully moderated. When a participant submits a statement, it is invisible to everyone until validated by a moderator. Only the participants and moderators are permitted to post in the formal debate/discussion threads. Unauthorized posts will likely be sent to the Rat Ring Gallery (see part D). General chit-chat, complaints to the moderator, and peripheral announcements like "I'll have my post ready Saturday" are not permitted. Complaints to the moderator should be communicated by either private messages, the Town Hall or In Confidence. Note: Unfortunately, a subscription to a Rat Ring thread will not work. Subscriptions do not work properly in a fully moderated forum. If you wish to be notified of Rat Ring posts, you can request that a moderator send you a private message.A fully moderated forum can be useful for formal debates/discussions with a concurrent posting format. In a concurrent debate/discussion, participants submit statements on their own time, within the time limit. Once all of the statements have been submitted from each participant for a round, the moderator will validate them, making each participant's statement appear simultaneously. B. Extensions in formal debates/discussions Formal debates/discussions can potentially span weeks or even months. A participant may have a life emergency, vacation, or other matter that can present a minor interference with his or her involvement. Participants can make a request to the moderators, preferably as well in advance as possible, for an extension of reasonable length. If the debate is between 3-6 rounds, then a debate participant is entitled to one extension. If the debate is between 7-10 rounds, then it is two extensions. We are reluctant to grant additional extensions beyond this amount. If it is the case that a participant may frequently encounter other life priorities that may interfere with his or her involvement, then we insist that the time limit between statements be made long enough to accommodate them. Overall, we request that TR members, before committing to a formal debate/discussion, take reasonable foresight of his or her future schedule to ensure that other life priorities will not significantly interfere with his or her involvement. C. Parameter Violations During the course of a formal debate/discussion, parameter agreements can be violated. Moderator responses depend on the severity of the violation. These can take the form of a warning, a declined statement, or at worst, a forfeiture. Repeated violations may result in a forfeiture at the moderators' discretion. All of the rules and guidelines from regular forums apply to The Rat Ring. Flaming, insults and other uncivil behaviour are strongly discouraged. If a participant has already forfeited more than one debate, or if he or she has a consistent history of rule violations, then that person may, at the staff's discretion, be banned from participating in The Rat Ring indefinitely. Described below are some common parameter violations and how they are generally dealt with. (1) Off topic material:D. The Rat Ring Gallery The Rat Ring Gallery thread allows the rest of the TR membership to comment on a formal debate/discussion as it progresses. The Rat Ring Gallery thread will be set up and stickied in a regular discussion forum that relates to the topic being debated or discussed. We ask that participants refrain from posting in the Rat Ring Gallery until the debate/discussion is officially over. IV. Conclusion The Rat Ring Rules and Procedures is an evolving document that can be amended as we grow more experienced moderating formal debates and discussions. Also note the Rat Ring Moderator's Handbook if you would like to understand how a formal debate/discussion might be moderated. We would be happy to take feedback from the Town Hall to improve future versions. If you have no experience with formal debate/discussions or feel confused about anything in the rules and procedures, then the moderators would be happy to answer any questions you may have. Overall, we hope that The Rat Ring provides an intellectually stimulating venue for TR members to observe or take part. We look forward to your participation! Sincerely, - The Rat Ring Moderators Ver. 1.6 Last edited by KnightWhoSaysNi; 10-02-2008 at 05:13 PM. : minor changes |
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