TPF guidelines on "hot button" topics

[terri]

Hey all - we've been struggling over the last day or so with several threads related to gun use, gun images, etc.

Just a general reminder, hot button topics such as religion, politics, and gun/weaponry discussions are not permitted. These threads will either be locked or simply removed with no discussion.

The internet is a big old place, and there are forums devoted to these topics. TPF is NOT one of them.

Even as a photography forum, simply showing images of your gun collections will inevitably bring about inflammatory comments, despite the OP's best intentions. Hence, we can and will continue to remove all such posts.

Please remember TPF is a privately owned forum, and the moderating team is here to enforce the guidelines as laid out by the site owners. Simply put, it is not a democracy, so posting opinion polls or complaining will not change the rules. We're not trying to be harsh, just laying out the facts.

Remember, only the Subscriber's forum is mainly unmoderated and, as a hidden forum, is THE single place in TPF where the rules are more lax. Thanks to everyone for your continued support!

[TPF Sponsor]

[Chase]

One quick point I wanted to make. The team members that run this site have views and opinions that vary widely across the spectrum. So, please don't bother to imply that we're forcing our views on you, the only thing we're doing is enforcing the rules we have created.

As has been stated earlier, this is a privately owned site and we have created the rules that we feel comfortable with. Complaining that they are unfair and should be changed isn't going to get you anywhere. If you feel a rule should be changed or modified, we're happy to listen to constructive criticism and have a brief discussion on it, but I can also ensure you that the chance for changing most of these rules is very slim. I'll also just about guarantee that you aren't saying anything that hasn't been said before.

Touching on "Off Topic" for a moment. What Off Topic IS: an area to talk about subjects outside of photography and just have some fun. What Off Topic ISN'T: a free for all to do/say whatever you want regardless of the rules.

So, the bottom line is this. I believe most of you would agree that we moderate very lightly in general. Unless you touch specifically on the rules of things we ask to keep off the forum, you don't see us modifying/deleting posts, and you don't see us running around banning people. If you are unhappy with some of the specific rules about what conversation is to be avoided, I'm sorry to hear that, but there are plenty of sites dedicated to the exact points you want to discuss. Please go there to discuss them. Photographers tend to be a passionate group of people, as most artists are, so let's keep the passion focused on the art we all enjoy and around building friendships and let's not focus on topics that have the strong potential to turn our passionate nature ugly.