Welcome to New England Patriots Pulpit, affectionately known as "Pats Pulpit."

Pats Pulpit is an open community. All are welcome, and we're happy to have you. (Please read my original welcome to this site and my welcome to the original Pats Pulpit.)

Here, you are free to discuss and debate the New England Patriots, the NFL, Boston sports and sports journalism.

However, over the course of time, some people have abused our community's openness. Thus, I have instituted rules. Originally, I didn't think these rules were necessary. I optimistically trusted that adults could commune here with little to no supervision, to treat each other with courtesy and respect. My trust was misplaced for primarily two reasons: not all our visitors are adults, and some adults just don't know how to play nice.

Free Speech

When I enlisted in the military, I swore to uphold the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. To execute that duty, it's important to know what the Constitution (and the Bill of Rights) says. The First Amendment (relevant parts bolded and italicized) reads:

Clearly, I am not Congress. This is a privately owned and operated blog. It is not a democracy. I am the rule of law.

I believe entirely in Free Speech, but Free Speech does not provide for anyone to say absolutely any thing, any time, any place, or in any manner. Community members and visitors are expected to treat one another (and me) with courtesy and respect. This is not a request.

The Rules

The following rules serve a singular purpose: To ensure Pats Pulpit is a safe and enjoyable community for fans and others to discuss and debate the New England Patriots. Please note: These rules are not wholly inclusive.

1. No vulgarity. I may be more strict than the FCC. Beyond the obvious words, others often heard on TV may be prohibited. I will send private messages to violators to explain the infraction and to invite the poster to re-post. Offending posts will be deleted.
2. Intolerance, Prejudice and Discrimination are entirely prohibited. Don't even use them in jest.
3. No peronal attacks. Insults, name-calling or derision directed against community members or visitors will not be tolerated.
4. Harassment or baiting of community members is unacceptable.
5. Inflammatory comments intended to annoy, anger, mock or otherwise incite the community are prohibited.
6. Political comments and discussions of any kind are forbidden. This is a sports blog, not a political blog. There are plenty of blogs out there if you want to discuss politics.
7. "Relentless negativity" will not be tolerated, whether expressed by a Patriots fan or anyone else. I will quote the community rules of Sports Blogs Nation's founder and creator of its first blog, (Oakland) Athletics Nation:
   Regurgitating the same venom over and over again doesn't help anything or anyone. [Pats Pulpit] is aiming to be better than that. If you continue to do nothing but post negativity, you will lose posting privileges without warning. There's a difference between someone who aims to point out flaws and [is] constructive and someone who is destructive.
8. No solicitations of any kind. Do not post diaries or comments asking people to visit your unrelated site, to buy anything, to endorse anything, to sign up for anything. You can place a link to your own blog or website in your signature, as long as they are not solicitations of any kind.

When I pursued a career in journalism, I rededicated myself to the First Amendment and to the ethics of my profession. As the operator of Pats Pulpit, I am a freelance journalist, and I continue to abide by those ethics. I know quite a bit about fairness, accuracy, the foundations of argument, libel and other topics.

That doesn't mean that I will not express my opinions. It also means that I will provide equal opportunity for community members to express their opinions. That said, be aware that there is an enormous difference between opinions and allegations. I will challenge unsubstantiated allegations, claim and arguments. I will challenge posters to provide facts, evidence and documentation to support their theories and arguments. Those unable or unwilling to provide satisfactory substantiation are subject to consequences outlined below.

Potentially libelous statements will be deleted immediately upon discovery.

Consequences for violations:

• Offending comments and posts will be deleted upon my sole discretion.
• With the exception of "minor vulgarity," for which I will exercise limited leniency and issue warnings, offenders may or may not be warned, have their accounts erased, or be banned from the site.
• Repeat offenders will be dealt with appropriately.

Bear in mind, I am judge and jury. You may appeal privately by emailing me directly. Appeal emails must include your Pats Pulpit user name.

Filing complaints about other community members

If you believe any user has violated the above guidelines, email me directly with the following information:

• Your Pats Pulpit username
• The Pats Pulpit username of the alleged offender
• The URL(s) of the post(s) in question.

I will review the complaint and take action as I deem necessary. The complainant will receive acknowledgment that the complaint was received but will not receive notification of any action taken.

A little advice: Lecturing me about logic, journalism, democracy, free speech or similar topics will not endear you to me. If you want to discuss something, I'm open. If you want to tell me what I do or do not know, save yourself the typing.