The Guatemala-Adopt email list operates under a very simple set of content guidelines, which are explained under this question. Additional questions spell out some of the issues in more detail.

You must agree to follow these guidelines before joining the list. If you fail to follow them later we will warn you once (if the error is not too serious). Additional or more serious violations will result in restriction of list privileges or removal from the list, at the discretion of the list owners. Our tolerance for honest mistakes is high; our tolerance for thoughtlessness or unaware rudeness is much lower; and we have no tolerance at all for deliberate nastiness or harassment.

If you are familiar with online discussions you may be used to quite a bit of rancor and discourtesy. Such behavior is not tolerated on this list. The fact that you don't know people personally should not prevent you from treating everyone on the list with courtesy, no matter how disturbing you find the form or content of their comments. You are welcome to disagree, but do so civilly or your list privileges will be swiftly and firmly restricted.

The following guidelines govern what is acceptable to post to the list. They have been deliberately kept as short as possible but they must be adhered to in all posts. They apply to any message you post to the list, and in most cases to anything you write to someone privately in direct response to a list post. Their interpretation is at the discretion of the list owners. Breach of the rules may result in withdrawal of list privileges.

• Be friendly, thoughtful, and civil in whatever you write, giving those with whom you disagree the benefit of the doubt. Speak to ideas and actions -- not to the personalities, motivations, or character of others on (or off) the list. Sarcasm, name-calling, harassment, bigotry, threats, legalistic responses or threats of legal action, etc. are not tolerated. Unverified rumors, accusations, and innuendo also are not welcome. Everyone's opinions and views are of equal value - comparative statements suggesting that one list member's value or importance is greater or less than another's are also prohibited.
• Stay on topic -- that includes Guatemalan adoption, Guatemala, adoption, and directly related issues, including parenting, politics, culture, and other issues as they relate to Guatemalan adoptive families. It excludes unrelated items, especially controversial ones like other political issues, opinions on controversial topics that someone else mentioned inappropriately, virus warnings, etc.
• No subject or thread once posted to the list can be excluded from discussion or questioning if it falls within the list guidelines. In other words, if you post some material you cannot then ask others not to discuss or question it.
• Please sign your posts - a first name only is fine. You may not misrepresent your identity and you must make clear any adoption related affiliations you may have. You can mention your company or professional association in your signature but please restrict this to the company name and your position only. Please do not use slogans or anything to try to attract clients.
• Don't advertise any product or service, or solicit funds for any project or organization, or organise any campaign for political or other action even if what you are offering is somehow Guatemala- or adoption-related. However, you can mention informational meetings and other gatherings of interest to list members. You can explain the work or report results of a relevant charitable organization or project you are involved with and allow people to contact you for more information. You can NOT post listings of waiting children -- if you have a special case, ask the list managers.
• You may address posts to the list to a specific individual to assist others to follow a debate/thread (for example, "Judy, when you wrote about X it occurred to me that ...") as long as the topic is of general interest. Similarly you may ask questions of specific individuals if it is clear that the response will be of interest to others. However, questions and statements that are meant for one person or a defined small group, and are not designed for general consumption, should be taken off list and sent directly to the individual(s) in question. This includes the organising of campaigns for political action, charitable causes, fundraising, or any other effort.
• Do not do anything with someone else's words without their permission -- in other words don't post private or copyrighted material to the list, nor forward list material to anyone else, without explicit permission which should be stated in the post.
• Let the list owners manage the list. If you see something inappropriate, ignore it -- we'll almost certainly notice it ourselves. Do not post or respond to messages about whether what someone else said was appropriate for the list. We take care of things like that behind the scenes.
• You are solely responsible for your own postings - and for the consequences of any defamatory statements you make. The list owners cannot and will not check contents for accuracy -- that is left to each individual list member and the list member alone is responsible. See the following question for additional details on legal issues related to messages you send to the list.

Are there legal concerns with messages posted to the list?

There can be. Most of what is posted on the list is either opinion or personal experience and is unlikely to raise legal issues. However if you write something about someone else (another person, an adoption service provider, etc.) which "defames" that person, you legitimately could be subject to legal action by the other person. There may be other potential legal problems with list messages as well, but defamation is the primary concern we are aware of.

Neither these guidelines nor the list managers can provide you with legal advice as to what constitutes "defamation", but it is defined in one legal dictionary as "communication to third parties of false statements about a person that injure the reputation of or deter others from associating with that person".

You should be aware of this issue and avoid making defamatory statements in your posts. This means that, at a minimum, you should carefully verify that any potentially negative information you post about another person, service provider, etc. is factually correct before you post it. If you do not, or if you otherwise run afoul of defamation laws, you run the risk that your statement will be considered defamatory and that the other person will take legal action against you.

Please note that except in very rare instances the list managers do not review messages before they are posted, and certainly do not check them for accuracy, nor determine whether they might be defamatory. We monitor tone, civility, and the appropriateness of the topic, but do not and cannot check the accuracy of what is posted. YOU and YOU ALONE are fully responsible for the content and accuracy of messages you send to the list, and for the consequences of any defamatory statements you make.

As list managers we do not in any way get involved in legal issues which may arise due to a message sent to the list. Should you post defamatory or other messages which create a legal issue, that issue is directly between you as the writer and publisher of the problem message, and the person who was wronged. Similarly, if you feel you have been legally wronged by a list message your only recourse is to deal with the person who wrote it; the list managers are not in a position to assist you (except that we will assist you with the mechanics of having a non-argumentative factual correction posted to the list if you are not a list member).

What do I do if someone posts something I think is wrong / stupid / out of line / offensive / etc., or that really makes me mad?

You have two options. The first is to simply hit the delete key and go on to the next message.

If you care about the issue and think you would like to reply, take a few deep breaths, or in more serious cases wait a few hours until you feel calmer. The madder you are, the longer you should wait.

Then compose a civil reply that addresses the IDEAS you disagree with, not the person who posted them or their motivations, intelligence, competence, ethics, etc. This rule applies no matter how out of line you think the original post was.

Failing to stop to think before you post, or otherwise posting angry messages which qualify in the eyes of the list managers as flames or personal attacks, is a quick route to having your list access restricted. It also is not an effective way to present your case to others. Take the time to be civil, or just let the issue go.

Also, please do not post or respond to messsages on the list discussing whether someone else's post was appropriate or within the list guidelines. That's the list managers' job. If you think we have missed something, write to us privately.

Very carefully. Most such reports turn out to be rumors with little immediate truth to them. Sometimes they aren't true at all; other times they are about proposals, not things that are actually happening, or are exaggerated versions of small changes. When they are posted to the list before they are checked out they tend to scare people unnecessarily.

Unfortunately the fact that your information may have come from an adoption agency, facilitator, or attorney does not mean you can assume it's right -- these organizations all too often fall prey to rumors too.

If you do have this kind of information, you can check with the list owners before posting, and we will pass it around privately among knowledgable sources before it gets posted. You can also ask a more general question about the situation, without posting the details. For example "How are things going in the passport office these days, I heard there were some changes?" or "My agency says passports are taking a little longer than usual, does anyone have any more information?" are both much better than an unverified statement like "I heard there are terrible delays in the passport office because the director was just fired."