AboveTopSecret.com Council Charter

AboveTopSecret.com Council Charter - 26th Nov 2005

PURPOSE

MISSION STATEMENT:

The ATS council exists for the members. Our mission is to listen to the needs of all members, young and old alike, and to be your voice. Not only will the council work to solve problems, but we will also work to create new incentives to promote heightened member enjoyment. Each council member has been elected to represent a specific area of the board to make it easier for you to make us aware of problems, ideas and thoughts you may have. We welcome all member input. In the spirit of denying ignorance, help us learn what you want so that we can make ATS a better place for all.”

AUTHORITY

1) Compiling and putting forward member ideas and concerns in an official capacity.

2) Applauding Members for high standard posts.

When a council member believes that a member has written a post of an extremely high standard they may Applaud the member by clicking on the Applaud button on the relevant post. This facility must NOT be misused in any way, for example to constantly applaud your best friend for one-liners so they get a shiny red bar however.

3) Notifying board administration staff of violations of board T&Cs and potential problems via the Alert button.

Alert Button

How to use?

Click the Alert button under the offending members avatar in the offending post

What happens when you hit the Alert button?

A thread is created in the Complaint forum and it will be named "Look at this post by (name of offending member)". The person hitting the button will be named as the Author of this thread and he/she can edit it within the normal timeframe for editing posts

When to use the Alert button?

When T&C is broken. Or if there is some sort of a serious reason to alert mods about this post. Not to point out duplicate threads, threads in the wrong forum, etc (then use other ways to alert mods assigned to that forum or just leave it. Let the mods do their job).

What to do after you hit the Alert button?

Go to your alert-post in the complaint forum. Edit the post. Include a brief explaination why you "set off the alarm" for this post. In some cases if a case is solved and if you can still edit that post, you may also change the headline/title of the post to include "solved", "sorted", "done" or similar to tell other mods that they do not have to waste their time opening that post unless they´re really bored.
Also mention in which forum the alerted post is in. Mods have assigned forums and they want to know who should respond to the alert without having to look for it every time.


COMPOSITION

The organisation of the ATS Council, is member elected representatives convening to better speak for members on issues concerning they're participation of ATS. The Council is not to be seen as mini moderators, or as any person of authority. A Council person is to be seen as a mouthpiece, or a friendly ear for the membership body as a whole, as well as eyes and ears for ATS staff.

The ATS Council is headed by a Forum Steward whose job it is to keep everyone informed of the currant agenda. The Forum Steward is to be chosen from the elected Councillors using the standard voting process.
The council is elected in a democratic fashion, and has elected to vote based on a democratic system in keeping with the way they were elected. Council elections are to be held 3 times yearly, giving each convened council a 4 month term.

The forums are grouped with one representative for each as follows:

At Large Council

Areas covered - All forums (ATSNN, BTS, DISC, PTS, ATS) plus

Website-Related Discussion
Introductions
RATS
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X Council

Areas covered - Alien, UFO & General Science Forums

Aliens & UFOs
Science And Technology
Space Exploration
Fragile Earth
Ancient and Lost Civilizations
Cryptozoology and Mythical Beasts
Medical Issues and Conspiracies
Origins and Creationism Conspiracy
Paranormal Studies
Predictions and Prophecies
Conspiracy in Religion
Weaponry
Aircraft Projects
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G Council

Areas covered - NWO, Government Conspiracies & Projects

War on Terrorism
New World Order
Secret Societies
Peak Oil
Political Conspiracies
Education & Media
Military & Government Facilities
Military & Government Projects
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BTS Council

Areas covered - Below top Secret Forums
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DISC Council

Areas covered - DISC (Deny Ignorance Steering Committe)
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PTS Council

Areas covered - All Politics Forums on ATS & PTS
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MEETINGS and VOTING

1) ANY COUNCIL MEMBER CAN CALL A VOTE

(a) Must have 4 out of 6 votes to pass;

(b) One week time limit for debate from the time of original post, or until the entire council casts their vote;

(c) The measure is binding unless a re-vote is called for by three members; and can be overturned with a vote of 5 out of 6 counsellors.


2) Meetings will be held in a pre-arranged fashion at least once a month at a mutually agreed time.


RESPONSIBILITIES

1) To represent the members and present their ideas and concerns to senior management
2) To teach by example and help create a friendly, welcoming environment for all members, both old and new
3) To think of new ideas in improving the ATS on-line experience
4) To help members with any queries they may have
5) To help ensure that members feel welcome and comfortable
6) To act as eyes and ears for ATS staff to help ensure that T&Cs are not broken