We got some great inputs so far, thanks guys. I look forward to seeing more.
A while ago I heard this story I thought I should share with you:
When Eisenhower became the president of a university, some of the administrator came to him with a problem. They explained to him about students walking on grass they are not supposed to. Apparently, no matter how much signs they put up, the students still went ahead and walk through the grass. They had no idea what to do, and thought Eisenhower, a brilliant general, ought to know how to discipline the students and keep them in order. Eisenhower went to look at the grass the students walk over, and he ordered the administrators to pave over the paths the students walked over.
The moral of the story is, people are going to do what they are going to do. You can't force them to abandon human nature
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So, couple of things to keep in mind:
1. People are going to do what they are going to do. It might not be always beneficial to enforce too many rules all the time.
2. Everyone is different. It may not be reasonable to ask everyone to be reasonable, understanding, and compassionate. Some are bound to think with their emotions, while others are more moderate and level-headed.
3. Every year we try to come up with rules and reminders, and they have limited success. An iron fist to crack down on the rules might not be as good as you think it is.
4. I can’t stress this point enough. There MUST BE room for mistakes. That’s one of the best ways to learn. The rules should not tell people to be perfect.
So, keeping that in mind, maybe we can come up with a set of guideline/rules with a philosophy that tell us how to participate as a community constructively, while denying as little human nature as possible.
Sorry for giving you guys headaches ;-).