Crocker's Rules

(from SL4)

"Declaring yourself to be operating by Crocker's Rules means that other people are allowed to optimize their messages for information, not for being nice to you. Crocker's Rules means that you have accepted full responsibility for the operation of your own mind - if you're offended, it's your fault. Anyone is allowed to call you a moron and claim to be doing you a favor. (Which, in point of fact, they would be. One of the big problems with this culture is that everyone's afraid to tell you you're wrong, or they think they have to dance around it.) Two people using Crocker's Rules should be able to communicate all relevant information in the minimum amount of time, without paraphrasing or social formatting. Obviously, don't declare yourself to be operating by Crocker's Rules unless you have that kind of mental discipline.

Note that Crocker's Rules does not mean you can insult people; it means that other people don't have to worry about whether they are insulting you. Crocker's Rules are a discipline, not a privilege. Furthermore, taking advantage of Crocker's Rules does not imply reciprocity. How could it? Crocker's Rules are something you do for yourself, to maximize information received - not something you grit your teeth over and do as a favor.

Crocker's Rules are named after Lee Daniel Crocker." He was once active on Wikipedia and was probably partially responsible for its early troll-friendly policy.

Any faction can adopt these Rules with respect to internal faction conflict, or declare them to apply to comments directed to the faction itself.

Trolls do so by default, by disregarding others' feelings explicitly in their communications, after which they effectively authorized these Rules. And, according to them, everyone else is better off for it!

The specific behaviour that is disabled is offending others freely and then claiming sanction or privelege because they have offended you. A whole faction that adopts Crocker's Rules does not allow its adherents to complain about rudeness, offense, etc., externally to the faction regardless of how displeased they are. They may however still complain about vandalism including sysop vandalism, whether rationalized by mere rudeness or not.