Seven Rules

The Seven Rules are required of BoyChat posters to follow in order to keep the board useful for all and remain legal.

The current (2015) seven rules are as follows

1. Do not post erotica or overly-detailed sexual discussions.
2. Do not request, offer, or post links to illegal material, including pictures.
3. Do not engage in campaigns of harassment against other posters. NOTE: Rule #3 was changed in 2013 (superficially) -- as a response to criticisms of the cogs, criticisms mainly being made by the heavily harassed poster martirwithacause -- to read "Do not annoy the cogs." When the link to the Current BoyChat Rules is clicked upon, one may see that the original Rule #3 remains the same. There is no reference to "annoying the cogs".
4. Do not reveal identifying details about yourself or other posters.
5. Do not advocate or counsel sex with minors.
6. Do not post admissions of, or accuse others of, potentially illegal activities.
7. Do not request meetings with posters who are under age 18.

The seven rules are complimented by eight guidelines which are:

1. Please refrain from one-line "Me too" or "Kewl dude" replies. Real-time posting should take place on the Treehouse, and threads of this nature may be moved there..
2. Don’t harass, insult, threaten, or impersonate other posters.
3. Please refrain from posting responses outside of the threads to which they apply, unless the thread is deeply buried.
4. No spam posting. Spamming is an attempt to dominate the board by a poster who continually and consistently posts for the purpose of degrading, commercializing, disrupting, or otherwise negatively affecting BC. Such threads may be moved to YCDTOBC, and when warranted, the poster may be banned.
5. If you have a link to include, please place it in the Link URL box to give posters the option of using a proxy.
6. Please refrain from using BC to notify other posters you have sent them email.
7. Try not to make posts specifically aimed at upsetting other posters, sparking flamewars, or otherwise disrupting the board.
8. Don't infringe copyright (see FAQ).

History

During the period of June - August 1996, BoyChat had just moved under the care of Sean007 and he asked some of the regular posters to come up with a set of rules that the board should operate under. These original rules are still very close to the ones that exist today. Encephalon wrote the original seven rules which were:

1. No erotica.
2. No requests for explicit or questionable material.
3. No blatant flames, excessive profanity, or insults.
4. No "me too" or "cool, dude" messages.
5. No overly detailed or prurient sexual discussions.
6. No "You're a bunch of perverts" messages.
7. No requests to meet boy participants in Real Life.

The original seven rules stood until late 2000 when the cogs made some minor changes and In 2002, HoldenC directed a major revision to the rules which included examples of why the rules were required. Holden's changes were based on input from the posters and the cogs.

The seven rules as they were in 2001

The Seven Rules exist to ensure the safety of all visitors to BoyChat as well as the safety of the resources that allow BoyChat's existence. We don't like to restrict content. We don't like it when our freedom to speak is taken away. But there are some posts which contradict BoyChat's mission, or which endanger its existence. We disallow these posts in order to keep BoyChat running. The Seven Rules serve two important functions: First, the Rules give posters the parameters of what we consider to be acceptable content on BoyChat. Second, the Rules serve as the basic guidelines used by the administrators of BoyChat to edit the content of the board if needed.

1. Don't post erotica or overly detailed sexual discussions.

We define "erotica" to mean anything intended to provoke a sexual response. BoyChat deals with sexuality, so it's necessary to talk about sex and sometimes to share sexual experiences. These discussions should be carefully worded so as not to be mistaken for erotica. We won't judge your behavior, but we don't want to be liable for your misdeeds either. We generally use U.S. and Canadian laws as a guide.

2. Don't request, offer, or post links to illegal material, including pictures.

We don't know how to define pornography, but we know it when we see it. Basically, anything that could cause legal trouble to possess or view falls under that category. BoyChat is not a place for locating or exchanging such material. Posts which violate this rule are subject to immediate deletion. Repeated violations of this rule may result in the poster being banned.

3. Don't harass, insult, threaten or impersonate other posters.

We all come from different backgrounds. Disagreements will arise and strongly worded replies are okay, but keep it under control. Vulgar or obscene language, insults and name-calling are strongly discouraged. Impersonating another poster, posing as a government official, or pretending to have access to BoyChat's server logs will all be regarded as a violation of this rule. Posts containing such material will be deleted and the poster may be banned as a result.

4. Don't reveal identifying details about yourself or other posters.

Law enforcement agencies, as well as self-styled "child advocates" whose sole mission is to harass members of the boylove community, read BoyChat, so don't post your real name, your regular email address, your location, or any other information that could help to determine your identity; doing these things is the most common way that posters invite trouble by compromising their anonymity. New posters who reveal such information will be warned, and their posts will be edited. If you're a regular poster and want to "out" yourself, please remember that once the information is posted, you can no longer control it. Please be careful: we can't protect you from yourself. Likewise, please be careful when you write about other posters.

5. Don't post one-line "Me too!" or "Kewl, dewd!" replies.

Posts that simply indicate agreement or approval not only clutter up the message index but also push other posts to the Old Posts archives faster while adding nothing of substance. Posting one-liners back and forth within a thread also clutters up the message index.

6. Don't post admissions of potentially illegal activities.

This rule is designed to curtail the posting of any material that could lead to a criminal investigation of the poster. Such an investigation could threaten the existence of BoyChat inasmuch as the server could be seized in an attempt to identify the poster making the admission.  DO NOT post admissions of ANY activities which could be illegal in any U.S. or Canadian jurisdiction.

7. Don't request meetings with posters who are under age 18.

Sleazy media like tabloid newspapers and TV programs are eager to portray BoyChat as a tool for child molesters who are looking for victims. Don't help them fabricate their lies by attempting to use BoyChat as a dating service. 

If you're under 18 please be especially careful not to reveal your real name, your regular email address, or where you live. We can't control who reads BoyChat, and your safety requires that you remain anonymous. If someone tries to contact you for a real-life meeting, please report it to the BoyChat webmaster.

External links

Current BoyChat Rules