6.1 - Why is rasnm moderated?

Even though all Big 8 Usenet newsgroups have a Charter, in an unmoderated
newsgroup there is no way to ensure that posts to the newsgroup abide by
the Charter. Everyone is on the "honor system". Unfortunately, that
oftentimes results in a newsgroup becoming a dumping ground for spam,
profanity, off-topic posts, and (in the case of rasn -
rec.autos.sport.nascar) flaming/bashing/personal attacks directed towards
other posters, race teams, drivers and/or their families as well as the
sport's media.

rasnm (rec.autos.sport.nascar.moderated) was created to provide a forum
where all topics related to NASCAR (and stockcar racing in general) can be
discussed without these distractions. The tools exist to ensure that the
discussion remains civil and follows the rasnm Charter guidelines via a
team of human moderators and a robo-moderation software called S.T.U.M.P.

6.2 - What does it mean, registration?

Before you are permitted to post directly to rasnm without having a
moderator review each of your submissions, your address must be registered
with S.T.U.M.P. Until this is done, all of your submissions...

On April 1, 1994, the USENET newsgroup rec.autos.sport was divided into
several racing-related groups - one of which was rec.autos.sport.nascar, or
"rasn" as it became known to it's participants. On August 13, 1998 a second
nascar-related USENET newsgroup (this group) was voted into existence:

rec.autos.sport.nascar.moderated, or "rasnm".

The rationale for the creation of this new USENET newsgroup was stated in
the RFD and CFV as follows:

============================================================================

"NASCAR and stockcar racing, as well as other motorsports, have been the
subjects of Usenet discussion for many years. The existing
rec.autos.sport.nascar newsgroup (rasn) gets a total of well over a hundred
messages a day during the off-season and that number can increase to two to
four times that figure during the season, peaking at over 1000 a day during
speedweeks. Much of this traffic is relevant and of high- quality, but
there are also significant problems with spam, advertisements,
Driver/Team/Sponsor/Car-Make/Media abuse, and attacks aimed at other
posters to the newsgroup. Many former posters to RASN have left because of
this situation.

The charter of r.a.s.n.m, which we have all agreed to follow,
prohibits "Commercial or Money-Making Posts":

4) Commercial and Money-Making Posts are defined as posts
whose primary purpose is to solicit a benefit for the
poster. This would include, but is not limited to,
advertisements of businesses, direct advertisements of goods
and/or services for sale, posts advertising the availability
of goods and/or services for sale through another medium,
promotion of business opportunities, money-making schemes, and
chain letters.

In the interests of allowing fans to help each other, the
moderators have decided to allow the advertisement and sale
of tickets ***at face value*** or ***below***. We do not
consider this "money-making," since the sellers simply get
back the money they have invested in the tickets.

Please MAKE SURE to put the FACE VALUE of the tickets in the post,
and either the phrase "I am selling these at face value of $xxx" or
"I am selling these for $xxx, which is below the face value of $yyy."

Just a thought. Maybe the mods will nix it as OT but it is lull time.
And I am fascinated (and digusted with myself for being so) by the
present and anticipated future of THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.

First, I'd like to poll rasnm. Who do you like...now? I'd like to see,
e.g., if the alleged Christian redneck NASCAR community supports, say,
Huckabee. Or how do people outside liberal Massachusetts view Hillary?
Hey, my young nephew is a point man for Obama in NH (wondering if
he'll have a job after 1/8:)

Talk shows, of course, are loving it. WTKK, 96.9 in Boston is a
favorite; don't know where it is elsewhere. Imus/Severin/Egan and
Broude (tho they're Boston figs/others.

Brad

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Christmas.

Tom S.

The charter of r.a.s.n.m, which we have all agreed to follow,
prohibits "Commercial or Money-Making Posts":

4) Commercial and Money-Making Posts are defined as posts
whose primary purpose is to solicit a benefit for the
poster. This would include, but is not limited to,
advertisements of businesses, direct advertisements of goods
and/or services for sale, posts advertising the availability
of goods and/or services for sale through another medium,
promotion of business opportunities, money-making schemes, and
chain letters.

In the interests of allowing fans to help each other, the
moderators have decided to allow the advertisement and sale
of tickets ***at face value*** or ***below***. We do not
consider this "money-making," since the sellers simply get
back the money they have invested in the tickets.

Please MAKE SURE to put the FACE VALUE of the tickets in the post,
and either the phrase "I am selling these at face value of $xxx" or
"I am selling these for $xxx, which is below the face value of $yyy."

6.1 - Why is rasnm moderated?

Even though all Big 8 Usenet newsgroups have a Charter, in an unmoderated
newsgroup there is no way to ensure that posts to the newsgroup abide by
the Charter. Everyone is on the "honor system". Unfortunately, that
oftentimes results in a newsgroup becoming a dumping ground for spam,
profanity, off-topic posts, and (in the case of rasn -
rec.autos.sport.nascar) flaming/bashing/personal attacks directed towards
other posters, race teams, drivers and/or their families as well as the
sport's media.

rasnm (rec.autos.sport.nascar.moderated) was created to provide a forum
where all topics related to NASCAR (and stockcar racing in general) can be
discussed without these distractions. The tools exist to ensure that the
discussion remains civil and follows the rasnm Charter guidelines via a
team of human moderators and a robo-moderation software called S.T.U.M.P.

6.2 - What does it mean, registration?

Before you are permitted to post directly to rasnm without having a
moderator review each of your submissions, your address must be registered
with S.T.U.M.P. Until this is done, all of your submissions...

The registration process outlined in the charter for new posters wanting to get
started posting to rec.autos.sport.nascar.moderated has been eliminated.

Now, instead of having to register an agreement to abide by the charter, new
posters simply have to post an article like they would to any other USENET
newsgroup. The first post from any given e-mail address kicks out to one of the
moderators for review.

If the post is on-charter, the e-mail address from which it was posted is added
to the robomoderator

On April 1, 1994, the USENET newsgroup rec.autos.sport was divided into
several racing-related groups - one of which was rec.autos.sport.nascar, or
"rasn" as it became known to it's participants. On August 13, 1998 a second
nascar-related USENET newsgroup (this group) was voted into existence:

rec.autos.sport.nascar.moderated, or "rasnm".

The rationale for the creation of this new USENET newsgroup was stated in
the RFD and CFV as follows:

============================================================================

"NASCAR and stockcar racing, as well as other motorsports, have been the
subjects of Usenet discussion for many years. The existing
rec.autos.sport.nascar newsgroup (rasn) gets a total of well over a hundred
messages a day during the off-season and that number can increase to two to
four times that figure during the season, peaking at over 1000 a day during
speedweeks. Much of this traffic is relevant and of high- quality, but
there are also significant problems with spam, advertisements,
Driver/Team/Sponsor/Car-Make/Media abuse, and attacks aimed at other
posters to the newsgroup. Many former posters to RASN have left because of
this situation.

Speed Mail: Gordon wasn't robbed of title

http://sports.mobile.msn.com/en-us/articles.aspx?aid=7438028&acid=2&afid=167&pg1...

Van from Dallas: What do you think about the fact that under the system
Dale Earnhardt won his seven championships, Jeff Gordon would have six
because he would have won in 2004 and 2007. But with the Chase, he once
again got robbed of his fifth.

Larry McReynolds: I can't tell you all just how many e-mails like Van's I
have gotten since the season ended (and several before the checkered flag
fell at Homestead). But no matter how each message was phrased, my answer
is the same for each and every one: Nobody was robbed.

Jeff Gordon has never said anything negative about our point system.
NASCAR didn't tell the teams in August, "Oh, by the way, boys, here's what
we're going to do." Everyone went to Daytona with zero points. Jeff Gordon
was on equal ground with Ward Burton. All of the teams knew that at the
end of 26 races, they were going to re-rack everybody, give 10 bonus
points per win and then go at it for 10 more races. I really don't hear
any competitors complaining. They seem to like this format even better
than the format for the first three years.