This missive will be posted several times a month during tax season for the benefit of newcomers to misc.taxes.moderated.
1.0 - Introduction
This is a moderated newsgroup which means that all submissions are reviewed by the moderator before they are posted. The moderator reviews submissions in batches and posts the newsgroup periodically during the day.
The posting of a submission by the moderator is not an approval of the opinion expressed there in.
Refer to Section 3.0 for what does and what does not get posted to misc.taxes.moderated.
Also the total cost of this newsgroup is bourne by the moderator who is intolerate of argumentative behavior and responds to neither arguments nor critcism.
2.0 - Guidelines for posting
a) When possible, keep your line length to 60 characters. The software used by the moderator generally reformats replies to a 60 character line length
b) When responding to a post,
(1) Write your response within the message and after the message as opposed to before the message.
(2) Trim unnecessary verbage from the post.
c) Do not include a .sig file that is a blatant advertisement.
d) Do NOT include ATTACHMENTS of any nature. This newsgroup does not post attachments, binaries, etc.
3.0 - What does and does not get posted to m.t.m. The general policy is that, subject to exceptions, what is submitted to misc.taxes.moderated will be posted to misc.taxes.moderated.
Exceptions:
What follows is a list of submissions that will usually not be posted. This list is NOT inclusive; it is NOT infallible; it is NOT complete; and it is subject to change without notice or explanation.
a) Anonymous submissions.
b) Submissions violating either paragraph 12 or 13 of the Charter of misc.taxes.moderated as approved by the Usenet community.
c) Submissions that suggest tax scams whether or not under the guise of tax planning, political correctness, or disingenuous patriotism.
d) Submissions discussing social policy not currently before the Courts or legislative bodies.
e) Submissions not consistent with a well-tempered, professional discussion, e.g., personal attacks, sarcastic remarks, angry tone, or anything else with which the Moderator takes exception.
f) Submissions that lack tax-relevant content.
g) Submissions that continue a closed thread.
h) Submissions that appear to be advertisements.
i) Submissions with excessive quotations from prior posts.
j) Submissions the moderator perceives to be more appropriate in another newsgroup.
k) Submissions from individuals who claim they can not receive e-mail.
l) Submissions that are to references to a URL not known to the Moderator to be a legitimate tax site.
m) Submissions containing excessive or inappropriate CAPITALIZATION.
4.0 - Policy on rejection notices:
When reading the following paragraphs, keep in mind that during tax season misc.taxes.moderated receives an average of 140 e-mail messages a day and that 30%+ of those e-mail messages are completely irrelevant to the newsgroup.
Because I consider it an imposition on the time I could be spending with my children to send rejection notices, my preference is to delete rather than reject. This means that if you receive a rejection notice from me, you should consider it a professional courtesy.
There are no circumstances whatsoever under which I will be bothered to notify people who exhibit a lack of integrity, e.g., racists, sexists, homophobics, spammers, tax protesters, and other sociopaths, that their garbage has gone to the great bit bucket in the sky.
I have in the past sent rejection notices where the tone of a submission bordered on sarcasm or flaming, where the content of a submission bordered on advertising, and where the submission referenced a "closed thread." Please note that I am NOT bound by my past performance.
5.0 - General disclaimer There is no warranty, expressed or implied, to the accuracy of the contents of misc.taxes.moderated. You are advised that those contents represent the non-binding opinions of the posters and that your individual tax questions and problems should be referred to a tax professional who has a comprehensive understanding of your personal financial situation.
I specifically maintain an internet account for misc.taxes.moderated that is separate and apart from the resources of my employer so that there is no question that misc.taxes.moderated while being a public utility is not associated with my employer. In case you missed the point, I am stating very unequivocally that no individual other than myself has First Amendment Rights on my nickel!! The purpose of this point is (1) if you do not like how I moderate this newsgroup, find another newsgroup, (2) I enforce the exceptions noted in Section 3 as vigilantly and as rigorously as is practicable without regard for their source AND (3) I absolutely disclaim any and all responsibility for momentary lapses of any nature.
Dick -- Richard D. Adams, CPA, CIA, CISA, CDP Moderator: misc.taxes.moderated
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