General Guidelines:

1) Language matters:

This is an English language forum (excepting our Spanish and German subforums) on an academic topic. Posts should display an acceptable level of English with regard to grammar, punctuation and layout. This goes for both native and non-native speakers (although we're likely to be more sympathetic when judging the writing of the latter).

2) Tone matters:

A respectful and moderate tone is desirable as it's the most likely to foster serious and productive discussion. Having said that, you may express yourself strongly as long as it doesn't disrupt a thread or degenerate into flaming (which is not tolerated and will result in your post being deleted).

3) Context matters:

The amount of leeway you get on the above depends to a degree on where you post and what the topic under discussion is. You're likely to have more freedom in casual and political discussions, for example, than in philosophical discussions.

Starting new discussions:

Don't start a new discussion unless you are:

a) Genuinely interested in the topic you've begun and are willing to engage those who engage you.

b) Able to write a thoughtful OP of reasonable length that illustrates this interest, and to provide arguments for any position you intend to advocate.

c) Capable of writing a decent title that accurately and concisely describes the content of your OP.

d) Starting an original topic, i.e. a similar discussion is not already active (and not a copypasta from elsewhere on the internet. Plagiarists will be banned).

For more help: see How to Write an OP.

Addenda:

1) No bumps allowed. If you want to attract replies, think of a better way.
2) While there are no specific limits to the number of discussions you can start, if we feel you are unfairly monopolising space on the front page, we reserve the right to delete your discussions regardless of content.

Posters:

Types of posters who are welcome here:

Those with a genuine interest in/curiosity about philosophy and the ability to express this in an intelligent way, and those who are willing to give their interlocutors a fair reading and not make unwarranted assumptions about their intentions (i.e. intelligent, interested and charitable posters).

Types of posters who are not welcome here:

Evangelists: Those who must convince everyone that their religion, ideology, political persuasion, or philosophical theory is the only one worth having.

Racists, homophobes, sexists, Nazi sympathisers, etc.: We don't consider your views worthy of debate, and you'll be banned for espousing them.

Advertisers, spammers, self-promoters: No links to personal websites. Instant deletion of post followed by a potential ban.

Trolls: You know who you are. You won't last long

Sockpuppets: You may be banned. The onus is on you to explain to us if you are using the same IP for multiple accounts.

AI

AI LLMs are not to be used to write posts either in full or in part (unless there is some obvious reason to do so, e.g. an LLM discussion thread where use is explicitly declared). Those suspected of breaking this rule will receive a warning and potentially a ban.

AI LLMs may be used to proofread pre-written posts, but if this results in you being suspected of using them to write posts, that is a risk you run. We recommend that you do not use them at all

How moderation works:

Any member who is an admin or a moderator has the right to edit or delete your post or discussion. You won't receive any notification of these changes (not a conscious choice on our part, but an integral feature of the forum software). If you want to check who the admins and moderators are, click on the "staff" link in the members section.

If you notice a change that you object to, you have the right to appeal, which you can do by either contacting a moderator or an admin via private message, or by starting a new discussion in the Feedback category. You'll get a fair hearing, if not necessarily the result that you want.

Moderator conduct:

In discussions, a moderator is subject to the same guidelines as everyone else, and shouldn't, under normal circumstances*, moderate their interlocutors. You can report a moderator or ask that a moderator be moderated in the same way as you would any other poster by flagging their posts or by sending a private message to another moderator. In other words, moderators as posters don't have a special set of guidelines to operate under, and in this capacity they should be treated like other posters. When it comes to moderating decisions, however, the Feedback category, or, again, a private message, can be used to complain about their actions. Please do not use other discussions to make these complaints or your comments will be deemed off-topic and will be subject to deletion. Feedback discussions should also be kept on-topic with regard to the specific complaint being made.

(*Exceptional circumstances may include instances of racism, extreme flaming, etc. When the decision is very obvious, the action needs to be taken quickly, and there may be no one else on duty to do it.)

Bans:

Admins have the right to ban members. We don't do that lightly, and you will probably be warned about your behaviour if you are under consideration for a ban. However, if you are a spammer, troll, racist or in some other way obviously unsuited to the forum, a summary ban will be applied. Bans are permanent and non-negotiable. Returning banned members will be rebanned.

The above guidelines are in place to help us maintain a high standard of discussion and debate, and they will be enforced. If you feel from the get-go that their very existence impinges on your right to free speech, this is probably not the place for you.