December 25, 2006

Read the Guidelines : Please. Is the linking to a meager Yahoo! article just to foster a discussion tolerable?

posted by Ying Yang Mafia to editorial policy at 02:21 PM - 70 comments

The homer links seem to come in clumps, (and are often started by the same guy). We're in a batch right now.

posted by chicobangs at 02:31 PM on December 25, 2006

That Pete Carroll link is the worst. Not only does it link to a Yahoo! article, it's just a roundup piece. One sentence about Pete Carroll, and that's it. Demerits for bad FPPs! When you can't win the cupie doll becuase you're five points short, that'll teach you!

posted by The_Black_Hand at 05:24 AM on December 26, 2006

Whatever happened to the waiting period???

posted by lil_brown_bat at 08:03 AM on December 26, 2006

I think he was grandfathered in.

posted by jerseygirl at 09:46 AM on December 26, 2006

Oh, right, both of them are -- in one case I didn't read the date carefully enough. Well, we've got several cleanups in aisle 5 today, and they're not technically noobs. One in particular seems to have decided that the whole purpose of this site is to "get people to use Yahoo! and generate numbers to get maximum advertising revenue", and that therefore the rules are all a sham.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:54 AM on December 26, 2006

I thought christmas day would be quiet. I then deleted a link that shouldn't have been deleted. Bad day. Back to the grind.

posted by justgary at 11:14 AM on December 26, 2006

If I can get MGM Studios out of my life, I'll get back to coding here.

posted by rcade at 12:22 PM on December 26, 2006

I don't mind the Yahoo links near as much as the lack of punctuation and run on sentences. The same noobies that do this also tend to not capitalize, so everything seems to run together. Makes me want to tear my own eyes out. Mentioning it to them does no good, either. (Hint, luther.)

posted by hawkguy at 12:43 PM on December 26, 2006

If I can get MGM Studios out of my life, I'll get back to coding here. You have a lot of drama in your life. When did MGM register their trademark?

posted by bperk at 01:01 PM on December 26, 2006

I thought christmas day would be quiet. I then deleted a link that shouldn't have been deleted. Bad day. Back to the grind. i remember this place when it wasn't so OVERMODERATED. too soon?

posted by dfleming at 01:04 PM on December 26, 2006

i remember this place when it wasn't so OVERMODERATED. From dec. 6 to dec. 24 there were a total of 4 threads deleted. One A link to a random high school game recap. Already not available. Two Wasn't my deletion, also already not available. Three A double that the poster asked to be deleted. Four A paragraph without a single punctuation mark. Criticism is welcomed but unless I'm missing something that's pretty much the opposite of over-moderation.

posted by justgary at 02:19 PM on December 26, 2006

Maybe dfleming was joking?

posted by lil_brown_bat at 03:11 PM on December 26, 2006

Oops, went straight over my head.

posted by justgary at 03:27 PM on December 26, 2006

If I can get MGM Studios out of my life Goddamn, man, you are a shit magnet. That being said, I think I may have found a new game to try. Vietcong - Purple Haze sounds pretty cool. I mean, it has music by the Standells and the Stooges in it. How cool is that?

posted by NoMich at 04:19 PM on December 26, 2006

If I can get MGM Studios out of my life I've been privately engaged in a time-consuming dispute with Nathan J. Hole From the sounds of it, he sounds like a real hole all right. Keep your chin up, rcade. At least the Pope loves you.

posted by jerseygirl at 04:24 PM on December 26, 2006

If I can get MGM Studios out of my life, I'll get back to coding here. Oh, hey, that reminds me, I had to roll on you to those fuckers over at Sony, they brought in the heavies and I folded like a cheap newspaper. Sorry, man. Look, this'll blow over, just don't answer the door. Maybe get out of town for a few days. I'm just sayin'. "Mister Cadenhead, a Mister Chasm from Sony here to see you."

posted by The_Black_Hand at 06:38 PM on December 26, 2006

At least the Pope loves you. He loves me, but does he call? I did a solid for 1.2 billion Catholics. That's got to count for something. Goddamn, man, you are a shit magnet. It all started when I got into an argument with Luke Ford last year on my blog about whether bloggers should worry about getting sued. I took the "No" side.

posted by rcade at 09:07 PM on December 26, 2006

Nathan J. Hole, a lawyer representing MGM Studios Does the J stand for Jackass? btw, you don't think you could call in a favor with Don, I mean, Pope Benedict, see if he could maybe put in a good word for you with the boys in Hollywood? An offer they can't refuse?

posted by worldcup2002 at 09:17 PM on December 26, 2006

Well, we've got several cleanups in aisle 5 today, and they're not technically noobs. One in particular seems to have decided that the whole purpose of this site is to "get people to use Yahoo! and generate numbers to get maximum advertising revenue", and that therefore the rules are all a sham. Due to the cencorship in another post that has been deleted, not everyone had the opportunity to read our comments lbb. So I guess we take up our beef here. First, I find your inablility to provide my name with the comments gutless and cowardly. You seem to be a "rules obsessed person" and if rules aren't followed literally, you get bent out of shape. Last I looked, your not part of the group that founded this site nor part of the editorial and cencoring group who moderates the threads. So why do you always feel the need to reprimand everyone? When "people" (in quotes to honor lbb) have something to say at just about every post, it think they lose credibility. And lbb, you seem to have a comment on every post at this forum. Like I said in the other deleted post, I hope Santa gave you a gift card to get a life! I will use my time to worry about more pressing issues in our world and leave the petty nitpicking about the SpoFi rules to you. It appears to be the only way you can garner self esteeem.

posted by panteeze at 07:58 AM on December 27, 2006

From panteeze: The true reason for this forum is to get people to use Yahoo! and generate numbers to get maximum advertising revenue. Lets not be so nit picky with the rules "people". Also, lbb seems to have had right on her side since the FPP was deleted, so I guess people do give a shit.

posted by bperk at 08:08 AM on December 27, 2006

panteeze, stop the personal attacks. They violate the rules. We have guidelines for a reason and if a fellow member, such as lbb, points them out it is an attempt to be helpful. Constant flouting of the guidelines has resulted in being banned in the past, and I'm pretty sure it will again in the future. So please, relax, stop overreacting, and read the guidelines. If you feel the guidelines shouldn't apply to you, I'm sure one of the pantheon will show you the door.

posted by apoch at 08:26 AM on December 27, 2006

panteeze, i would doubt that if you're able to go on such a self-serving diatribe like that about one of the most active and respected members of this community that you're doing much for those "pressing issues in this world". (after all, you're here now, aren't you?) she might not have been one of the founders of this site but lbb's been one of those most active in preventing this from becoming another "your team sucks, mine rules" sports forum. she's keeping this place as a somewhat intellectual sports forum, something that unfortunately requires a whole lot more adherence to the rules than other types of sites do. so kindly and repeatedly sod the hell off.

posted by dfleming at 08:30 AM on December 27, 2006

I just want to re-iterate my support for the people on the front lines, enforcing SpoFi's high standards for FPPs and posts. I've been flamed a few times myself for doing so, but I have no regrets. There are a million free-wheeling sports discussion boards out there filled with careless comments and homerism. Most of them are pretty intolerable. SpoFi is different, and I applaud both moderators and members for helping to keep it that way. I've never had a dissenting view censored here, even when I ripped rcade for guaranteeing Jacksonville over New England in last year's playoffs. Censorship shouldn't be confused with the enforcement of high standards.

posted by Venicemenace at 08:44 AM on December 27, 2006

You know, Panteeze, SpoFi has the same basic rule of just about any party: You don't like it, leave. As somebody more eloquent than me said previously, "sod the hell off."

posted by The_Black_Hand at 08:49 AM on December 27, 2006

panteeze, stop the personal attacks. They violate the rules. We have guidelines for a reason and if a fellow member, such as lbb, points them out it is an attempt to be helpful. Laughable! Its not a personal attack. Its a personal defense. Did you see me taking any sniper pot shots at lbb? I don't think so? As I stated earlier, I think she is a coward and a know it all wannabe. This is merely a defense against her cowardly personal attack towards me. And you might think she is well respected, and you are entightled to your opinion. By as I am entightled to my opinion, I have zero repsect for her arrogance and cowarldy behavior. This is a forum for sports. It should be fun. I can deal with the "people" who are way to serious about the rules. I just can't deal with them when they unnecessarily jump all over others with the "I am your parent" attitude. So lbb, apoch, dfelming and any one else who shares their opinion, STEP OFF MY NUTS!

posted by panteeze at 08:53 AM on December 27, 2006

As I stated earlier, I think she is a coward and a know it all wannabe. This is merely a defense against her cowardly personal attack towards me. yes, i'm sure that the majority here see you as some sort of victim of a malicious lbb, drunk off power and rum, weilding her mighty sword of fury to cut you down based on your posting style. your only defence is to go straight at her as a person, calling her a coward and a know it all! get a grip. lbb pointed out something you are doing and you went at something she is. if you can't see the difference there, perhaps you don't belong on the internet. or in society. This is a forum for sports. It should be fun. I can deal with the "people" who are way to serious about the rules. I just can't deal with them when they unnecessarily jump all over others with the "I am your parent" attitude. it's funny how in my 3 years here that i've had a ton of fun and never felt like a child. perhaps, you know, you could take the advice to heart instead of taking it as a personal insult?

posted by dfleming at 08:59 AM on December 27, 2006

I'm going to have to agree with dfleming. panteez, your self righteous victimization act isn't going to buy you any friends. We have the guidelines so this place stays fun. If you can't handle lbb trying to keep this place on the up and up, then you're better off posting somewhere else.

posted by apoch at 09:05 AM on December 27, 2006

We can buy friends here on SportsFilter? Consider my CD swap mega-mix of Color Me Badd, Master P and Michael Bolton as payment.

posted by forrestv at 09:15 AM on December 27, 2006

If you feel the guidelines shouldn't apply to you, I'm sure one of the pantheon will show you the door. I have never stated that the guidelines should not apply to me. Unfortunately, there was a post deleted yesterday in which the creator was unecessarily and harshly lambasted for initating the particular post. But prior to the posts deletion, lbb found it necessary to cut and paste my comments to this thread. In doing so, she neglected to cut and paste other comments from the thread that would have clarified my position. Lbb's actions were cowardly. get a grip. lbb pointed out something you are doing and you went at something she is. if you can't see the difference there, perhaps you don't belong on the internet. or in society. Gee, based on your comments dfleming, I guess I will be right in line behind you with everyone else who does not belong in society. I had no idea you had the power and authority to make such suggestions. The prior sentece was merely toungue and cheek but a great example of an "I am your parent" attitude. I will also state this site is full of individuals who take a snipet of information without all the facts and go right to judgement day. Very sad.

posted by panteeze at 09:21 AM on December 27, 2006

panteeze, I posted the link to the deleted thread above. Chico pointed out the flawed post and just linked to the guidelines. LBB responded to someone who said who gives a shit. Also, when LBB posted your comments in here, she provided a link so that people could see for themselves the entire context. When the thread was deleted, the context was also deleted.

posted by bperk at 09:26 AM on December 27, 2006

Perhaps the moderators can bring to this thread lbbs comments on yesterdays deleted post. More than likely, it would level the playing field and minimize the heat I have received for defending myself. And to think this site exists for the sole purpose of discussing sports without any financial incentive is nothing more than ignorance. So again, LIGHTEN UP guys.

posted by panteeze at 09:30 AM on December 27, 2006

I'd like to see you backup that statement.

posted by apoch at 09:32 AM on December 27, 2006

And to think this site exists for the sole purpose of discussing sports without any financial incentive is nothing more than ignorance. outside of your opinion, do you have any evidence to support this? if so, please provide some clout to your claim.

posted by dfleming at 09:34 AM on December 27, 2006

Who cares if anyone makes money off of this site? What's that got to do with anything? I hope they do make some money. They do a great job and provide a wonderful service (even if my employer doesn't think so).

posted by bperk at 09:41 AM on December 27, 2006

outside of your opinion, do you have any evidence to support this? if so, please provide some clout to your claim. I will gladly provide clout to my claim. I found SpoFi through Yahoo! I have SpoFi included in MyYahoo! home page. Each time I bring up my home page, Yahoo! registers my visit as a hit to their site. The higher the number of hits, the more they can charge companies to advertise on Yahoo! You can also access SpoFi directly. When doing so, the main page for SpoFi has a link to Yahoo!. So it is very clear to me a financial motive exists for this forum. Without a financial incentive, there would be no link to Yahoo! nor would SpoFi be an option for the MyYahoo! home page.

posted by panteeze at 09:43 AM on December 27, 2006

Who cares if anyone makes money off of this site? What's that got to do with anything? I hope they do make some money. They do a great job and provide a wonderful service (even if my employer doesn't think so). Once again, the origins of my financial comments was to serve as a reminder for the hidden reasons for this forum. And not to take it so damn seriously. If you want everyone to follow the rules verbatim, then create a private site and charge a membership fee. Otherwise, lighten up and move on if you don't like any particular thread instead of criticising the guy who created the thread.

posted by panteeze at 09:47 AM on December 27, 2006

I don't follow your logic. If the Pantheon wants members to follow their guidelines they should charge them money outright, otherwise everyone should adhere to YOUR interpretation of how the site should operate?

posted by Venicemenace at 09:58 AM on December 27, 2006

I found SpoFi through Yahoo! I have SpoFi included in MyYahoo! home page. Each time I bring up my home page, Yahoo! registers my visit as a hit to their site. What you've described is a part of web technology, panteeze, not a financial arrangement. Yahoo is one of many different web search engines that people can use, as you did, to find sites like SportsFilter. It's incorrect to conclude from that, however, that every site you can find through Yahoo is getting revenue from Yahoo. To give you an example, if I go to Yahoo and type "weather" in the search bar, I get a lot of sites, some of which are commercial (for example, weather.com, which is the Weather Channel)...but I also get http://www.weather.gov, which is the National Weather Service webpage, and which is certainly not hosting Yahoo ads. The connection's more complicated than that. Yahoo and other web search companies make money from ad revenue, yes...but people go to Yahoo for the content, not for the ads. Therefore, Yahoo constantly searches the web for content that people might be interested in, in the hopes that people will want to go to Yahoo to find the content that they like. Yahoo does not necessarily enter into any agreements with the owners of the sites they find, and it's not at all clear to me that there's any money involved in the "link to Yahoo" on the SportsFilter front page. That's not a link to Yahoo at all, in fact, but a link to a Yahoo utility that allows you to add SportsFilter to your My Yahoo page. You see that button on a lot of sites; if you like to view the web through Yahoo, you can use that button to have the added convenience of putting links to your favorite websites there, like SportsFilter. It's not clear to me, though, that any money changes hands either way. BTW, there are ads on SportsFilter, but they're Google ads, not Yahoo ads. The owners of the site do derive some revenue from those; if it's a standard arrangement, they probably only get paid if/when someone clicks through, and it's a pretty paltry amount. I have no idea about the state of SpoFi's books, but I doubt that ad revenue covers the costs for the site.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:59 AM on December 27, 2006

If you want everyone to follow the rules verbatim, then create a private site and charge a membership fee. I hate to break it to you but this is a private site and the creators could charge a membership fee if they wanted to. From what I have heard, SportsFilter was created by some members of the site metafilter.com who wanted to make a sports only weblog. MetaFilter charges a $5 membership fee, something that the creators of this site could do if they wanted to. Instead, they have been nice enough to let people join for free.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 10:13 AM on December 27, 2006

Instead, they have been nice enough to let people join for free. I am sure that is what it is.

posted by panteeze at 10:54 AM on December 27, 2006

Wow, I never knew about the deep dark secret purpose of sportsfilter. I'm such a tool! I always assumed it was about having good sports conversations! Dammit! I've been fooled all along! It was so obvious! An RSS subscription button proves the nefarious financial links from yahoo! No wonder rcade can afford to fight MGM to death in the courts.

posted by apoch at 10:55 AM on December 27, 2006

It was so obvious! An RSS subscription button proves the nefarious financial links from yahoo! No wonder rcade can afford to fight MGM to death in the courts. I'm still deeply suspicious about the whole pope-squatting incident. We haven't heard the whole story on that one, believe it.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 11:00 AM on December 27, 2006

I heard the lawsuit over wargames.com was due to his refusing MGM's lowball option offer on the pope squatting story.

posted by apoch at 11:03 AM on December 27, 2006

...You see us as you want to see us, in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out, is that each one of us is a shill, and a tool, and a clickbot, a fake, and a spoilsport. Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, The Spofites Club.

posted by chicobangs at 11:09 AM on December 27, 2006

I'm Spartacus.

posted by qbert72 at 11:14 AM on December 27, 2006

Well dammit, rcade must have taken all the money. My only choice is to sue him.

posted by justgary at 11:37 AM on December 27, 2006

Hey, whaddaya know, I was right. Also, you're not fooling anyone, chico. The next screw that falls out will be you.

posted by SummersEve at 12:01 PM on December 27, 2006

Sounds like that's beginning to be a long line Gary.

posted by louisville_slugger at 12:15 PM on December 27, 2006

So Yahoo! really does run the New York Times and AP. It's a conspiracy!

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 12:28 PM on December 27, 2006

The New York Times owns the Boston Globe, which explains a lot about Dan Shaughnessy.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 12:30 PM on December 27, 2006

Where's my free stat tracker?

posted by bperk at 12:37 PM on December 27, 2006

Should have asked for a tinfoil bodysuit for Non-Denominational-Mas. Please start over. Right after you read a little about the technology that allows tubes to bring Sportsfilter to your very door via Yahoo!'s bank account.

posted by yerfatma at 01:00 PM on December 27, 2006

I just typed "panteeze" into Google. The first thing that came up was panteeze's SpoFi user profile. When you click on his profile, the right column is filled with "Ads by Google." Also, third on the Google search was a profile for a "panteez" at a forum for BMW owners. Clearly, there is more to this story. Obviously, panteez has been employed by Google to tear down Yahoo and all their little satellite money machines like SportsFilter. And evidently, this work is quite lucrative. You guys hiring, panteeze? What kind of dental you got?

posted by BullpenPro at 01:15 PM on December 27, 2006

This is all one big conspiracy...

posted by wingnut4life at 01:23 PM on December 27, 2006

If it is, it's a four-digit-number-bearer's conspiracy. Mind you, I don't have a prejudiced bone in my body, but...

posted by lil_brown_bat at 02:09 PM on December 27, 2006

BullpenPro if you search Ying Yang Mafia on Yahoo!, Google, MSN, and Ask.com the first hit every time is me. Apparently I am a quadruple agent.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 02:20 PM on December 27, 2006

If it is, it's a four-digit-number-bearer's conspiracy. I would be inclined to believe you, LBB, if you hadn't so thoroughly shot your credibility by posting so much. (Jams four digits into palm while extending pinky to corner of mouth.)

posted by BullpenPro at 02:46 PM on December 27, 2006

Just remember lbb, we outnumber you 100 to 1.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 03:16 PM on December 27, 2006

You mean 10 to 1?

posted by LionIndex at 03:49 PM on December 27, 2006

Hey, what's an order of magnitude among friends? And I include the four-digit unwashed in that, really, some of my best friends, ya know?

posted by lil_brown_bat at 03:55 PM on December 27, 2006

Cut him some slack. He just finished googling himself.

posted by BullpenPro at 03:58 PM on December 27, 2006

You mean 10 to 1? Sorry, you're right. Like bpp said, I'd just finished googling myself. It's hard work you know.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 04:10 PM on December 27, 2006

So it is very clear to me a financial motive exists for this forum. Without a financial incentive, there would be no link to Yahoo! nor would SpoFi be an option for the MyYahoo! home page. My Yahoo added SportsFilter early to the sports section for its "Add Content" feature and this site caught on. We've gotten thousands of new members that way. However, it's not a financial arrangement. We publish an RSS feed and Yahoo thought it was a good choice for its subscribers who are interested in sports.

posted by rcade at 05:41 PM on December 27, 2006

Fuck, I can't believe I missed STEP OFF MY NUTS. That paired with the diatribes and the SpoFi Area 51 bullshit was genius. Not like Einstein genius, but more in the way you see a guy pushing a broken office chair through Kenmore Square and he's yelling about it being a space ship sort of genius. I will use my time to worry about more pressing issues in our world Me too, like Britney started wearing underpants and stopped showing everyone her fallopian tubes. You go girl!

posted by jerseygirl at 05:49 PM on December 27, 2006

Fuck, I can't believe I missed STEP OFF MY NUTS. jerseygirl, we all figured you were in line at the BestBuy trying to buy a Wii or something. I dibs "STEP OFF MY NUTS" as my team name in the next SpoFi fantasy league, btw.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 06:02 PM on December 27, 2006

You take a couple days break from Sportsfilter, and you miss the best shit...

posted by grum@work at 07:32 PM on December 27, 2006

you see a guy pushing a broken office chair through Kenmore Square and he's yelling about it being a space ship sort of genius. Did you fall for that too? He told me he was the lost Jordan's Brother and it was a prototype for the next M.O.M. ride.

posted by yerfatma at 07:48 PM on December 27, 2006

jerseygirl, we all figured you were in line at the BestBuy trying to buy a Wii or something. Nope! I did get some nice wrapping paper and a lovely wreath for the front door for free, though.

posted by jerseygirl at 08:39 PM on December 27, 2006

I did get some nice wrapping paper, though. Wow, I can't wait to see my gift!

posted by The_Black_Hand at 05:26 AM on December 28, 2006

This is your gift, Mister Hand. You lucky bastard.

posted by chicobangs at 10:05 AM on December 28, 2006

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