A short list of what you should post in the GARM.

OK. After a really horrible stretch of bit bucket posts I am going to weigh in on what actually should and should not be posted in the GARM. We recently experienced a completely horrendous number of worthless GARM posts with a lead in of "If player X leaves would you still be a fan?" byline. The first actually had some meaning because it addressed a serious question about Lin fans. And then stupidity reigned and deluge of copycat threads happened. Shallow, mindless and pitiful. So IMHO these should be a guideline as to when you should start a new conversation thread in the GARM.

What not to post in the GARM:

• Any spur of the moment question that pops into your head.
• Questions that realistically have no answer other than IMHO. However I personally appreciate pointed questions that have to do with Rockets players chances in advanced competition like "Chandler's shot at USA team". Situational. Depends on the background offered.
• Senseless derivations of current threads.
• Questions like "What does this team have to do to lose you as a fan?" What does this add to the GARM? Nothing.
• Questions like "Would you still be a Dwight fan if Howard was traded?" Both a senseless derivation and a question that pops into your head. And I am looking at you ...
• Threads designed to push hot buttons and elicit ugly purposeless debate. Many Lin threads fall into this catagory.
• Threads that obviously should be posts. "Possibility: David Lee?" is a classic example. Clutch provides a trade thread. Use it.
• Any article dissing players without a thorough and detailed analysis of the player. Same for positive threads.

What you should post:

• Breaking news. If you are second to the submit that is OK. But please check the GARM before you hit the button.
• Detailed analyses. If it is obvious that you put in an hour or more thought into a thread people will realize it and actually cut you some slack. "An NBA Nightmare: The James Harden-Dwight Howard Pick-and-Roll". A beautifull example. But perhaps unachievable for us average posters. You do not have to live up to the gold standard.
• Schedules for members of the Rockets roster. Today's thread about the EuroLeague was a resounding success. A number of us actually watched the game and commented on it live.
• Historical threads about past Rockets teams. Especially if you include video. "Best Hakeem The Dream Youtube Video" is a good example.
• Questions that have been well thought out. Clutch posts are the epitome of these.
• Anything by Bima.

And I do realize that I will be flamed. But bits and screen are precious, and your personal opinion is not. Can we make this a better place for those of us that love basketball?

 

A completely senseless statement. What could possibly be more relevant to the GARM?

 

And we could be in an endless recursion of the most important point.

 

Yeah. Like all of these rookies read stuff like that. And who do you think are responsible for the stupid chatter we get on the GARM? Rookies. Maybe a few will read this and not hit the submit button.

 

I could not agree with you more. Perhaps it is just frustration on my part that prompted me to write this post. I hate having to wade through screens of pablum to get to what is important.

 

Yes. And honestly I am not blameless. But we all should try to do better. Perfection is not a humanly achievable attribute.