Guidelines

TRINITY PARK LISTSERVE GUIDELINES Revised March 31, 2013

PURPOSE

The Trinity Park Neighborhood Association (TPNA) created this ListServe in 1998 so that Trinity Park residents would have a forum to discuss neighborhood issues and TPNA business. This is still the main purpose of the List. Please keep this in mind as you consider posting.

If you live in Trinity Park, we encourage you to pay dues. Go to the website (trinitypark.org) and click on the TPNA tab and chose “Membership” for instructions. Dues can be paid via PayPal or by check.

If you do not live in the neighborhood but wish to support The Park (on Watts Street at Trinity Avenue), tree planting and other neighborhood improvements, please consider making a tax deductible donation to The Trinity Park Foundation, Inc. PO Box 725, Durham, NC 27702. TP residents – members and non-members – are also encouraged to donate to The Foundation!

GENERAL GUIDELINES

To ensure civility, there are a few guidelines for participation on the ListServe:

* Whether we agree or disagree, we must do so courteously. After all, we are neighbors who share a common goal of making our community better. Please focus on issues rather than personalities.

* Personal attacks will not be tolerated. A personal attack includes, but is not limited to, name-calling or disparaging someone’s character, physical appearance, occupation, sexual orientation, gender, race, creed, or basketball affiliation, etc.

* Restrain yourself from using profanity. Pretend that your grandmother is going to read what you post. (Unless she had foul mouth.)

DISCLOSURE OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST
Regardless of whether you are a TPNA member, we request that people disclose any non-obvious conflict of interest their post raises.

TO POST OR NOT TO POST

* In addition to posts concerning obvious neighborhood issues, announcements of local events that may be of interest to some or all Trinity Park residents are welcome. We also allow posts seeking a good painter, sharing neighborly wisdom, or selling a toaster. You or your real estate agent can tell your neighbors when you intend to sell or rent your home, should you tearfully leave Durham’s best neighborhood.

* When seeking recommendations for contractors or other needs, please ask people to send recommendations to your private e-mail address. Polite etiquette is then to post a single summary of the ideas for all of your neighbors to read.

* Feel free to tell your neighbors about political events that they may want to support or attend, but the ListServe is not the place to post your dissertation about the state of the nation or to inform us about the pros and cons of specific candidates or issues. Please announce the event or issue the invitation without your opinion or commentary.

* Occasional posts by Trinity Park residents offering their services to baby-sit or walk dogs are okay. However, this is not the place to post other kinds of commercial advertisements. These types of messages are reviewed and some may fall in a “grey area” and the poster may be removed from the List if abuses of this privilege are noted. The List is not intended to be free advertising for business interests.

* Please do not post chain e-mails that some neighbors may decry as junk mail. Send them to your more gullible friends instead.

* And the toughest guideline: Think before you post. Your neighbors don’t need to know that you simply agree with a point of view. Try to add something constructive. When there is a huge volume of posts on an issue, we’ll try to set up a neighborhood meeting. You can create a poll to ask your neighbors their opinions on issues in a concise way.

MODERATORS

* Since we are trying to create a space for thoughtful and meaningful discussion, this ListServe does have moderators who step in when needed. If any ListServe member disregards these guidelines, a moderator can immediately place that individual on “moderated” status, which means that future e-mails to the ListServe will have to be approved by the moderators before they can be posted. This is a last resort used only to ensure civility in this forum.

* Please keep in mind that our moderators are volunteers offering time, skills and care to this work and the work of maintaining the List. These individuals have been authorized to take action consistent with these guideline. They have broad discretion and TPNA is grateful for their efforts. TPNA has confidence in their goal of maintaining the List and ensuring a good outcome for all parties.

* When the tone of posts begins to deteriorate, the moderator may use his/her discretion to send a warning via private e-mail to those involved. The warning can be sent before or instead of placing the renegade posters on “moderated” status.

* The team of moderators also work to protect the list from viruses or address high-jacking. If your email account has been high-jacked, your address will be placed on moderated status.

* The TPNA Board will review on appeal all incidents that required someone to be “moderated.” The board will either approve keeping a resident on “moderated” status or will vote to revert them back to normal status when it feels comfortable that the resident can abide by these guidelines. Anyone who has been “moderated” has a one-time opportunity to protest that decision by requesting the matter be placed on the agenda of a future TPNA board meeting. Please send such a request to the TPNA Secretary. See the website for the name of the current secretary.
If you feel that the Trinity Park ListServe is being used inappropriately, send an e-mail to the TPNA Secretary. The other TPNA moderators can be contacted at newman@nc.rr.com

HOW TO…

* To subscribe, e-mail: trinitypark-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
* To unsubscribe, e-mail: trinitypark-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com.
* To visit our Yahoo! Groups website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TrinityPark/
* To find out more about Trinity Park, visit https://trinitypark.org

IMPORTANT: AVOID HELPING BURGLARS AND OTHER TIPS

* There are several ways to receive messages on this ListServe. You can receive individual e-mails, daily digests of e-mails, or you can go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TrinityPark/ and view messages online. To change how you receive e-mails, go to the group website and select “Edit My Membership” in the upper right corner of the screen. You must have a Yahoo ID and e-mail account to log in and view messages online. Such an account is free and easy to set up. Then you should subscribe to our group using that e-mail address.

* Unfortunately, the entire ListServe with more than 1,700 people on it receives those annoying, automatic messages that you are “out of the office” if you are using a work e-mail address to receive ListServe e-mails. Also, any burglars lurking among us could then know you are not home and it’s a good time to break into your house. Please be aware of this and take steps to avoid it, preferably by using a personal e-mail address without such a feature to receive messages from this group.