Rules for #Christiandebate

OP CONDUCT RULES

The purpose of #christiandebate is to spread the gospel message of Jesus Christ by evangelization through debate. As Ops, we should always keep this sacred commission in our hearts and minds as we carry out our duties. Please remember that we are all ambassadors of Jesus Christ; and as his representatives on earth, we should act in a manner that would please him at al times.

1) Primacy: When the Channel rules and the Op Conduct rules are in conflict, the Op Conduct rules take priority.

2) Binding: All Ops/Sops are bound by the Op rules as well as by the Channel rules. No one is above the law.

3) Primary Duty: The primary duty of every Op is to de-escalate any situation that may arise. Towards that goal, every Op should seek to ease any tensions that occur, and to promote harmony among our users. To accomplish this, Ops should always seek to warn users before resorting to using sanctions such as muting, kicking, or banning a user. If a sanction is unavoidable, ops should strive to use the lightest touch possible when using said sanctions. Small offenses that can be resolved with gentle warning do not require hour-long bans, or indefinite mutes. Every effort should be made to help any user, who has committed an infraction, to remain in the channel as a productive, and non-offending, user - if at all possible. Remember that it is better to under-react and escalate later, than to over-react and have to cleanup the mess later.

4) Bias: Whenever possible, Ops should find a neutral Op to mediate any issues on their behalf when they are the target of a troublesome user. This is of course not always possible, but when it is, the effort should be made to ask the neutral op to intervene so as to avoid bias and the "angry-mute/kick". Also, if you see another Op suffering excessive abuse by a channel user, STEP IN. Do not force the other Op to ask for help when it is clear he or she is in need of assistance. We are a team.

5) Responsibility: Each op is responsible for their own mutes, kicks and bans. An aOp may not undo another ops actions unless the primary op is away from their keyboard or otherwise not available to resolve the issue any longer. SOPS, however, may reverse an aOps decision if circumstances warrant and a majority of SOPS may reverse the decision an individual SOP if the circumstances warrant.

6) Dispute Resolution: If any user asks why they were sanctioned, or warned, it is incumbent upon the acting Op to clearly explain what the infraction was, what the sanction is, and exactly how long the sanction will last. It is also the acting ops responsibility to work with the user, and if possible, to restore them to the channel once the Op is satisfied the offense will not re-occur in the immediate future. If the user is not satisfied with a resolution discussed in private, or if the user does not wish to discuss the issue in private, they have the right to discuss it with the Op in the resolution channel #ChristianOps; in the resolution channel, users of the channel, neutral ops, and non-ops alike, can all discuss the issue and work together to resolve the issue.
7) Neutrality: If an Op is engaged in a debate with a user, then that op should refrain from sanctioning the user they are engaged in a debate with - if at all possible. If an Op is engaged in a debate with a user who has begun to violate the rules in a serious manner, they should seek a neutral op, and failing that, they should withdraw from the debate entirely before resuming their duties as an op. This withdrawal should be made clear to the user before any sanction is given; once withdrawn, the Op may not reengage in debate for at least 10 minutes. Basically, at no time should an Op be both, debating a user, and sanctioning them simultaneously.

8) Fights: Op fights on the open channel of any kind will NOT be tolerated. Take it to “/onotice” or the #christianops.

9) Fun Kicks: The responsibility of kicking, and/or muting users, is a serious one, and should not be made light of. The members should never be given the impression that our Ops take kicking and muting users as a joke. Fun-kicking and fun-muting people as a joke shall be grounds for loss of ops.

10) ChristianOps: The dispute resolution channel is a venue where ops and users alike can go to air out concerns about sanctions, or rule interpretations, and even to suggest new rules for the channel. That said, attendance in the resolution channel is a privilege. If a user abuses this privilege, he or she may be removed indefinitely by the SOPS. Users are expected to debate things calmly, rationally, and with respect. Ops on the other hand, need to be mindful that oftentimes people disputing a sanction may be upset at having just been sanctioned. Both sides need to make every effort to be understanding of each others positions.

11) Swear Words and Euphemisms: The Swear-kick Database is handled through the bots. The list will be maintained by the channel managers, who will add or remove words from the database through consultation with the SOPS. This will be an agreed-upon list with words which have been decided are to not be tolerated in any way. If any Op has a suggestion for a word to add to the list, please inform one of the SOPS or the channel founder through memoserv.

12) Automated Kicks: AKicks are to be set by SOPS and above. If an Op wishes to set a ban lasting longer than 4 hours, they must consult with a SOP, or channel manager, and ask them to set the ban. Banning a user on sight that has not been akicked by a SOP is unacceptable as this creates an effective akick. AKicks should only be set as a last resort where the nature of the offense was deliberate, repeated, and of the utmost severity.

13) Explaining Op Sanctions: It is the responsibility of every Op to explain, when asked by any user, what steps have been taken in resolving a situation. At no time should a user be told to, “Mind their own business”. All channel users have an interest in seeing how the rules are implemented and enforced. This allows a measure of transparency, and the knowledge that things are being handled fairly and honestly.

14) Op Sanctions: It is the responsibility of every Sop and Channel Manager to seek out and inform affected users what steps have been taken to resolve issues where an Op may have misinterpreted or misapplied the rules, or has otherwise behaved unfairly. Users know exactly what happens to them if they break the rules, so it is important that they understand that the Ops are also subject to the rules, and to know that the rules are being applied to everyone, fairly and honestly.