Terms And Conditions Of Use




Terms and Conditions of Use

Your use of the message board(s) (and inclusive forums and video services) and any other public medium hosted on the AboveTopSecret.com, ATSnews.com, media.AboveTopSecret.com, BelowTopSecret.com, AbovePolitics.com, and TheAboveNetwork.com, and any other website(s) owned and operated by The Above Network, LLC and any related organization(s) (collectively referred to as the "Websites") indicates your acceptance of the following Terms and Conditions of Use. The Above Network, LLC, its owners, and any related organization(s) will be referred to collectively from this point forward as "TAN." The Terms and Conditions of Use applies to unregistered users, registered users, and all other users accessing any type of content on the Websites (individually, a "User" and collectively, the "Users"). Certain additional terms apply to registered members of the Websites and are identified in the Terms and Conditions of Membership below.

TAN may change the Terms and Conditions of Use (and the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) at any time and the changes will become effective 15 days after posting the revised Terms and Conditions of Use (and the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) (the "Effective Date"). You can review the most current version of the Terms and Conditions of Use (and the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) at any time at www.abovetopsecret.com/legal.html. You are responsible for checking periodically for changes, and your continued use of the Websites after the Effective Date indicates your acceptance of any changes specified in the new Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the new Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership). Additional operating guidelines may be posted from time to time. TAN may also offer certain services (e.g., podcasting, media hosting, Internet radio, etc.) that are governed by different terms of service, and such different terms of service will be clearly posted on web pages associated with the service and govern the use of such service.

1) Service Changes and Discontinuation. Our services provide you with access to a diverse collection of online resources, including several types of communication tools, online forums, personalized content and branded features. Services are provided free of charge with no warranty as to quality or availability. TAN reserves the right to change or to discontinue temporarily or permanently the services at any time without notice. You agree that TAN will not be liable to you or any third party for any modification or discontinuance of the services.

2) Service Limitations. We work hard to make your experience enjoyable. However, we cannot always anticipate technical or other operational difficulties which may result in loss of data, personalization settings or other service interruptions. For this reason, you agree that the Websites, including the services of our third-party service providers, are provided "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE". Neither TAN nor our third-party service providers assume responsibility for the timeliness, deletion, mis-delivery or failure to store any data, communications or personalization settings.

3) Privacy Policy. TAN respects your privacy and has developed a detailed Privacy Policy that is incorporated into the Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership). Please take the time to read our Privacy Policy which is available at the Privacy Policy Link . By accessing the Websites, you are accepting the terms of our Privacy Policy.

3) DMCA Enforcement: TAN endeavors to comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (hereinafter "DMCA") and other applicable intellectual property laws. TAN will respond to notices of alleged infringement that comply with the DMCA and remove material from public view that we believe in good faith to be copyrighted material that has been illegally copied and distributed by any of our members or users. TAN will also terminate the accounts of repeat offenders. If TAN removes or disables access to comply with the DMCA, TAN will make a good-faith attempt to contact the owner, author, or administrator of each affected posts so that they may make a counter notification pursuant to sections 512(g)(2) and (3) of the DMCA. For more information about our DMCA policy and how to file a DMCA takedown notice, please see our DMCA Policy Page.

4) No Endorsement of User Content. Our Users are solely responsible for all posted Content (as defined in the next sentence) that is uploaded, posted, emailed, transmitted or otherwise made available on or through the Websites (collectively, "Post"). "User Content" means User-Posted content or information of any type or medium, including but not limited to: letters, emails or other messages; other forms of communication through the Websites; personal User information; board posts; reader reviews; blogs, ratings, data, notes and testimonials; images; audio or video files; and podcasts. User acknowledges and agree that TAN does not endorse any User Content and is not responsible or liable for any User Content, even though it may be unlawful, harassing, libelous, privacy invading, abusive, threatening, harmful, hateful, vulgar, obscene, and/or disruptive, or may infringe upon, misappropriate, or otherwise violate the intellectual property or other rights of another. User acknowledges that TAN does not pre-screen User Content, and has no obligation to do so, but that TAN and its designees will have the right (but not the obligation) in their sole discretion to refuse, edit, move or remove any User Content that is posted on the Websites. If you find any Posts in these forums to be offensive or threatening, please contact TAN or the moderators with the address of the Post. If we determine that removal of a Post or Posts is necessary, we will make reasonable efforts to do so in a timely manner. TAN will make every effort to provide a free and open discussion environment within the boundaries of the Terms and Conditions of Use and the Terms and Conditions Membership that does not contain offensive or threatening messages, but cannot guarantee that all such messages will be found and removed within any specific timeframe. You must evaluate and bear all risk associated with the use of any postings, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such postings.

5) Third Party Sites; Advertisers. The Websites may provide Users with opportunities, links or other incentives to use certain sites, services, products, applications or content offered by or through TAN's third-party providers, including but not limited to advertisers, and content and ecommerce providers (collectively, "Third-Party Services"). Your use of any Third-Party Services is subject to any terms of service or conditions of use associated with the Third-Party Services. TAN does not control Third-Party Services and is not responsible for any Third-Party Services or for the contents thereof, including, without limitation, any links that may be contained in or accessible through Third-Party Services. TAN does not endorse any Third-Party Services or any products, content or communications linked to or accessible from the Websites. You agree you are wholly responsible for making your own independent judgment regarding your user or interaction with Third-Party Services.

6) Use Of Content; Copyright. All content created by Users of TAN website are governed by an "Attribution - NonCommercial - NoDerivs 3.0 Unported" Creative Commons Deed (hereinafter "Creative Commons License"). Users can share, distribute, copy, and transmit the work Users find on TAN websites provided Users provide proper attribution that includes the name of the Website User, the name of the Website, and a link to the content thread. These usage rights do not apply to any commercial use of the content found on TAN websites, and such use is strictly prohibited without prior written authorization from TAN. These usage rights also do not apply to derivative works, and such use is strictly prohibited without prior written authorization from TAN. Each post of each thread contains a "copyright" link that clearly specifies the method in which the material may be shared, distributed, modified, or used.

You will not copy, distribute, display, or publicly perform material from the Websites to Post on other websites or quote in offline research in a manner that does not comply with the Creative Commons License that specifies the author's member name as a member of AboveTopSecret.com, includes The Above Network, LLC and the member as owners of the content, provides the title of the thread, and a full URL to the board thread. 


7) DISCLAIMER. You expressly understand and agree that:
YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITES IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. THE WEBSITES ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. TAN, ITS AFFILIATES, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, PARTNERS AND LICENSORS (COLLECTIVELY, THE "TAN PARTIES") EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

THE TAN PARTIES MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT (I) THE WEBSITES WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, (II) THE WEBSITES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE, (III) THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE WEBSITES WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE, (IV) THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION, OR OTHER MATERIAL PURCHASED OR OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE WEBSITES WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS, (V) THAT YOUR MESSAGES, DATA OR INFORMATION, IN WHATEVER FORM OR MEDIUM, WILL NOT BE LOST, OR (VI) ANY ERRORS WILL BE CORRECTED. ANY MATERIAL DOWNLOADED OR OTHERWISE OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITES IS DONE AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK, AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR LOSS OF DATA THAT RESULTS FROM THE DOWNLOAD OF ANY SUCH MATERIAL. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM ANY TAN PARTY, OR THROUGH OR FROM THE WEBSITES WILL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE OR (FOR MEMBERS) THE ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF MEMBERSHIP.

A SMALL NUMBER OF USERS MAY EXPERIENCE EPILEPTIC SEIZURES WHEN EXPOSED TO CERTAIN LIGHT PATTERNS OR BACKGROUNDS ON A COMPUTER SCREEN OR WHILE USING THE WEBSITES. CERTAIN CONDITIONS MAY INDUCE PREVIOUSLY UNDETECTED EPILEPTIC SYMPTOMS EVEN IN USERS WITH NO HISTORY OF SUCH SYMPTOMS. CONSULT YOUR PHYSICIAN PRIOR TO USE OF THE WEBSITES IF YOU HAVE HAD ANY OF THESE SYMPTOMS, AND DISCONTINUE USE OF THE WEBSITES IMMEDIATELY IF YOU EXPERIENCE DIZZINESS, ALTERED VISION, EYE OR MUSCLE TWITCHES, LOSS OF AWARENESS, DISORIENTATION OR INVOLUNTARY MOVEMENTS OR CONVULSIONS.

YOU AGREE THAT THE TAN PARTIES WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, DATA OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES (EVEN IF THE TAN PARTIES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES), RESULTING FROM: (I) THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE WEBSITES; (II) THE COST OF GETTING SUBSTITUTE GOODS AND SERVICES RESULTING FROM ANY PRODUCTS, DATA, INFORMATION OR SERVICES OBTAINED OR MESSAGES RECEIVED OR TRANSACTIONS ENTERED INTO, THROUGH OR FROM THE WEBSITES; (III) UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF YOUR TRANSMISSIONS OR DATA; (IV) STATEMENTS OR CONDUCT OF ANYONE ON THE WEBSITES; OR (V) ANY OTHER MATTER RELATING TO THE WEBSITES.

SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN WARRANTIES OR THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES. IN SUCH JURISDICTIONS, LIABILITY OF THE TAN PARTIES WILL BE LIMITED TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. TO THE EXTENT THAT ANY PART OF THIS SECTION IS NOT CONSISTENT WITH ANY OTHER PART OF THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE OR THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF MEMBERSHIP, THEN THIS DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES WILL OVERRIDE IT.

8) INDEMNIFICATION: You agree to protect and fully compensate the TAN Parties from any and all third-party claims, liability, damages, expenses and costs (including, but not limited to, reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your use of the Websites, or violation of the Terms and Conditions of Use (or for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) by you or any other user of your account (whether or not authorized), and you agree to indemnify and hold the TAN Parties harmless from any claim or demand, including reasonable attorneys' fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your use of the Websites, your connection to the Websites, your violation of these terms and conditions, or your violation of the rights of another. 

9) General Liability Notice: The open and real-time nature of the discussion forums makes it impossible for TAN to vouch for the validity or honesty of posts from individual members. TAN is not responsible for any messages posted, nor the consequences of reading them. The views expressed in the messages within the forums are those of the authors, who accept total responsibility for the content of their posts. 

10) Registration: When you register for our discussion boards, the only requirement is a functioning email address to confirm your registration. Your board password will be sent to the address you specify. Your email address will also be subscribed to our email newsletter service for which you can unsubscribe if you wish. The address you provide will never be shared with any other party as specified in our Privacy Policy. 

11) TAN Proprietary Rights: You acknowledge and agree that the Websites and any necessary software used in connection with the Websites contain proprietary and confidential information of TAN and third parties that is protected by applicable intellectual property and other laws. You further acknowledge and agree that advertisements or information presented to you through the Websites or by advertisers is protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, patents or other proprietary rights and laws. Except as expressly permitted by applicable law or as authorized by these Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) or the applicable licensor (such as an advertiser), you agree not to modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute, transmit, broadcast, publicly perform, publicly display, or create derivative works based on the material on the Websites, in whole or in part.

12) General Terms:

12a) Entire Agreement. These Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) are the complete and exclusive agreement between you and TAN with respect to the subject matter hereof, superseding and replacing any and all prior and contemporaneous agreements, communications, and understandings (both written and oral) regarding such subject matter.

12b) Export Restrictions: You shall adhere to all applicable laws, regulations and rules relating to the export of technical data and shall not export or re-export any technical data or the direct product of such technical data to any proscribed country listed in such applicable laws, regulations, and rules, unless properly authorized. In particular, you: (a) represent that you are not a party identified on any government export exclusion list, including but not limited to the U.S. Denied Persons, Entity, and Specially Designated Nationals Lists, nor will you transfer software, technology, and other technical data via the Websites to parties identified on such lists; (b) agree not to use the Websites for military, nuclear, missile, chemical or biological weaponry end uses in violation of U.S. export laws; (c) agree not to transfer, upload, or Post via the Websites any software, technology or other technical data in violation of U.S. or other applicable export or import laws.

12c) Choice of Law. These Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) shall be deemed to have been entered into in the State of Arizona. The rights of you and TAN hereunder shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Arizona without regard to conflicts of laws principles. Each party to this Agreement irrevocably (a) submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of any state or federal court located in Maricopa County, Arizona in litigating any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership), and (b) agrees that any such action or proceeding may be litigated only in such courts. TAN and you agree to waive, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the defenses of lack of personal jurisdiction, inconvenient forum, and improper venue to the maintenance of any such action or proceeding. Any final judgment rendered against a party in any such action or proceeding shall be conclusive as to the subject of such final judgment and may be enforced in other jurisdictions in any manner provided by law.

12d) Severability/Waiver: If for any reason a court of competent jurisdiction finds any provision of the Terms and Conditions of Use (or the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) invalid or unenforceable, that provision of the Terms and Conditions of Use (or the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) will be enforced to the maximum extent permissible, and the other provisions of this Terms and Conditions of Use (or the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) will remain in full force and effect. Failure by either party to enforce any provision of this Terms and Conditions of Use (or the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) will not be deemed a waiver of future enforcement of that or any other provision. Any waiver, amendment, or other modification of any provision of this Agreement will be effective only if in writing and signed by duly authorized representatives of the parties.

12e) Compliance With Laws: You agree to comply in all material respects with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations in connection with your activities under the Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership).

12f) No Assignment. Except as expressly provided herein, neither this Agreement nor any right, interest, duty, or obligation hereunder may be assigned, transferred, or delegated you, by operation of law or otherwise, without the express prior written consent of TAN, which consent may be withheld in the sole and absolute discretion of TAN.

12g) Non-exclusive Remedy: Except as expressly set forth in the Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership), the exercise by a party of any remedies provided in the Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) will not be deemed an election of remedies, and will be without prejudice to its other remedies under the Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership) or under any other agreement, or at law or equity or otherwise.

12h) Headings: The headings of the sections hereof are inserted merely for convenience and shall not be used or relied upon in or in connection with the construction or interpretation of these Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership).

13) Additional Terms And Conditions For Members Summary: The below specific and itemized rules not withstanding, all Users and members are expected to participate with the same common every-day social graces used in civilized mixed company. Our desire is to foster an environment of civil decorum that enables our members to discuss highly provocative and intensely speculative topics without concern over personal attacks or insults.

14) Term of These Agreed Upon Conditions By using and/or joining the Websites governed under these Terms and Conditions of Use (and for members, the Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership), you agree to honor these rules for so long as your account status remains active, and for 18 months after the termination of any account privileges due to violation of these conditions or other guidelines.



By becoming a member of the Websites,
you agree to the following additional terms and conditions:

Your membership in the Websites indicates your acceptance of the above Terms and Conditions for Use as well as the following Additional Terms and Conditions of Membership. These terms and conditions are subject to change without warning, so please review them regularly.

Forum posts, private messages, PODcasts, blog entries, videos, images, and other supported content that violate these terms and conditions are subject to action that may include, but is not limited to, edits, removal, or account termination of the poster.

15). Posting: You will not Post any material that is knowingly false, misleading, or inaccurate. You will not solicit personal information from any member. You will not use information gathered from this website to harass, abuse or harm other people.

15a) Offensive Content: You will not Post forum posts, private messages, PODcasts, blog entries, videos, images, and other supported content, links to images or use avatars and/or signatures that are unlawful, harassing, libelous, privacy invading, abusive, threatening, harmful, hateful, vulgar, obscene, and/or disruptive. You will not use text, images, avatars or link to images or domains that contain gore, mutilation, pornography or illegal content. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.

15b.) Profanity: You will not use profanity in our forums on the Websites, and will neither Post with language or content that is obscene, sexually oriented, or sexually suggestive nor link to sites that contain such content. You will also not use common alternative spellings or net-speak alternative for profane words.

15c.) Intellectual Property: You will not Post any copyrighted material owned by others, material belonging to another person, material previously Posted by you on another website, or link to any copyrighted material without providing proper attribution*, as defined by TAN, to its original source. You will not Post any material that infringes, misappropriates, or violates any patent, trademark, trade secret, or other proprietary rights of TAN or any third party. You will not use your Postings on the Websites to promote your own personal website or any other website with which you may be associated without first receiving permission from TAN.
* Proper Attribution for the posting of copyrighted material owned by others is defined as posting a relevant snippet of the online content not to exceed 10% of the entire piece, a properly formed link back to the source website, and a clear indication of the name of the source website. The posting to these websites of any copyrighted material owned by others that is not found elsewhere online is prohibited.

15d.) Cross-Posting: You will not cross-post content from other discussion boards (unless you receive advance written permission from TAN or their agents). You will not post-by-proxy the material of banned members or other individuals who are not members, but have written a response to content within a thread on these forums.

15e.) Recruitment/Solicitation:

i) You will not use your membership in the Websites for any type of recruitment to any causes whatsoever. You will not Post, use the chat feature, use videos, or use the private message system to disseminate advertisements, chain letters, petitions, pyramid schemes, or any kind of solicitation for political action, social action, letter campaigns, or related online and/or offline coordinated actions of any kind.

ii) You will not Post, use the chat feature, use videos, or use the private message system to collect or ask for the personal information (data mining) about forum members, including email addresses and "real life" names, in any manner whatsoever, or for any reason whatsoever.

iii) You will not Post, use the chat feature, use videos, or use the private message system to solicit members of the Websites on behalf of another message board, online community or competitor. You will not attempt to use your membership to encourage or lure other members in any way to other websites or discussion boards in competition with TAN. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.

15f.) Relevant Content: You will not Post messages that are clearly outside of the stated topic of any forums or disrupt a forum by deliberately posting repeated irrelevant messages or copies of identical messages (also known as "flooding").

15g.) Political Baiting: You will not engage in politically-charged rhetoric, politically-inspired name-calling, and related right-versus-left political bickering while Posting in any topical forum or discussion thread on the Websites. You will not alter political candidate names or party affiliations in order to insult or deride the opposition.

15h.) Spamming: You will not Post identical content, or snippets of identical content, to multiple threads in the discussion forums. You will also not create more than one thread for your topic, or create multiple "slightly different" threads for a single topic.

15i.) Language: The dominant language of our users and moderation staff is English. In order to promote a smooth-running environment and fair enforcement of the Terms and Conditions of Use (and the Terms and Conditions of Membership), you agree not to Post or chat in any language other than English.

15j.) URL Links: You will not place a link on any of the Websites that initiates an automatic download or execution of a file of any sort.

15k.) Video links/embeds: You will not embed or Post a link to a video without a reasonable description of its content and why it interests you, is germane to the topics discussed on the Websites or the topic of an existing thread should you post it in a reply to an existing thread.

15l.) [HOAX]: In the event you Post more than three items that are later determined to be of an obviously hoax, fraudulent, or faked nature, your account may be terminated without warning.

15m.) Termination: In the event your account or access privileges are terminated for any reason, your information and Posts will not be removed unless there is a violation of the Terms and Conditions of Use and the Terms and Conditions of Membership. Requests for voluntary "account deletion" and removal of your content will not be honored without a reasonable reason, provided in writing, to TAN.


16) Behavior: You will not behave in an abusive, libelous, defamatory, hateful, intolerant, bigoted and/or racist manner, and will not harass, threaten, nor attack anyone.

16a.) Identity Spoofing: You will not impersonate any person or entity, forge headers or otherwise manipulate identifiers in order to disguise the origin of any posting. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.

16b.) HaXor: You will not use the Websites for the purposes of sharing or distributing viruses, licenses, registration information, software keys, "cracks," or other information designed to do harm to or allow unlawful access to any computer hardware, software, networks, or any other systems. You will also not link to sites that contains discussion of such material. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.

16c.) Multiple Accounts: You will not create multiple user accounts and "talk to yourself."

16d.) Forum Gangs: You will not engaged in an organized collaboration with other members to disrupt thread topics or interrupt the flow of normal collaborative discussion. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.

16e.) Illicit Activity: Discussion of illicit activities, specifically the use of mind-altering drugs & substances, engaging in computer hacking, promoting criminal hate, discussing sexual relations with minors, and furtherance of financial schemes and scams are strictly forbidden. You will also not link to sites or online content that contains discussion or advocacy of such material. Any Post mentioning or advocating personal use of illicit mind-altering drugs will result in immediate account termination.

i) Narcotics and illicit mind-altering substances: Due to abuse of the subject matter by some (promoting various aspects of personal use, and discussing actual personal use), no new topics on this subject are allowed in any form.

Threats of suicide, discussion of past suicide attempts, or asking for advice on ways to commit suicide are also forbidden and will result in immediate account termination.

16f.) Private Messages: You will not use the private messaging system to send mass messages to multiple member accounts. All private messages are subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use and the Terms and Conditions of Membership. Violations will result in immediate account termination. You also agree that Private Messages are confidential. You will not post or publically display messages received from TAN, their agents, or any other members, in any way, without the written permission of the author. TAN, at their discretion, may review the content of your private messages when, and only when, complaints are received from the recipient(s) of your messages.

16g.) Board Wars: You will not use these boards to organize "attacks" on other boards, blogs, or discussion groups, and similarly, you will not organize such attacks against this board. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.

16h.) Public Affection: Explicit or overt displays of affection towards other members seen by staff as being disruptive to the board are strictly forbidden.


17) Rights In Posted Materials: By posting on this message board, you relinquish all exclusive copyrights to any materials you Post and furthermore, you grant TAN non-exclusive, non-revocable worldwide, royalty-free rights to copy, distribute, display, reproduce, modify, adapt, create derivative works, and publicly perform the materials in perpetuity in all forms. This license applies to all works of authorship including, but not limited to, written materials (e.g., text), audio, audio-visual materials, graphics, and images (including, but not limited to, graphics and images used as avatars). You also grant all third parties the right to copy, distribute, display, reproduces, and publicly perform the materials you post under the terms of the Creative Commons License. TAN has the authority to decide to display your postings or not, and you grant TAN the right to modify your posts, remove offensive material, modify your post title to accurately reflect content, remove vulgar comments, remove insults, or delete any other content deemed inappropriate, all at our discretion.


18) DMCA Enforcement: By posting on these domains, you grant TAN the right to seek enforcement and legal remedy for any and all discovered usage violations falling under the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) and the Creative Commons License. Remedy in such cases, will place a priority on proper attribution of you as the author and a link-back to your post (or posts), rather than removal. For more information about our DMCA policy and how to file a DMCA takedown notice, please see our DMCA Policy Page.


19) Advertising: You will not advertise or promote other discussion boards, chat systems, online communities or other websites on the Websites within posts, private messages, avatars and/or signatures without prior written permission from TAN. You will not choose a username that is the same as a website domain, subdomain, URL, organization, or business for which you are associated. Doing so will result in removal of your Post(s) and immediate termination of your account.


20a) Unauthorized Marketing: ATTENTION MARKETERS: You will not engage in efforts of viral or "stealth marketing" on these discussion boards without prior approval of TAN. If marketing activity for the promotion of any other commercial entity outside of these boards is discovered you agree that you are responsible for paying TAN $2.00 US for each "thread view" of the thread(s) in which your marketing messages are contained. Your acceptance of these Terms and Conditions of Membership for joining these discussion boards signifies your approval of these payment terms.

20b) Ad Blockers: As the Websites are provided as a free service, in part through the income of our advertising, you agree not to use "ad-blocking" software or similar built-in web browser options designed to obfuscate or block online advertising while using the Websites.


21) Personal Responsibilities/Indemnity: At all times, you agree to remain solely responsible for anything found within your posts, images, and videos and agree to indemnify and hold the TAN parties harmless from any claim or demand, including attorneys' fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of any material you submit, Post to or transmit through the Websites, your use of the Websites, your connection to the Websites, your violation of these Terms and Conditions of Membership (or the Terms and Conditions of Use), or your violation of the rights of another.

21a) Unauthorized Access: You will not attempt to access any protected sections of the Websites, or make use of any hacks, cracks, bug exploits, etc. to bypass or modify the features of the forum software or to obtain information beyond the allowed features of your account status. Doing so will result in immediate termination of your account.

21b) Cooperation: You will, if asked by TAN, cease to Post any content, and/or links to content, deemed offensive, objectionable, or in poor taste by TAN, in its sole discretion.


22) Disclaimer: TAN does not and cannot review all of the content of every message Posted and does not accept responsibility for the contents of any messages. We reserve the right to delete any message and/or restrict Posting rights on the message board for any reason whatsoever. Should you continue to Post messages that violate these Terms and Conditions of Membership, your account may be terminated, your ability to access to the Websites may be restricted or blocked, and your service provider(s) may be contacted about your behavior. Furthermore, TAN expressly reserves the rights under the law to take any other actions deemed necessary.

22a) Disclosure: TAN also reserves the right to disclose any known personal information when required by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to conform to the law or comply with a legal process served on TAN, protect and defend the rights or property of the TAN domains, or visitors to these domains, identify persons who may be violating the law, the legal notice, or the rights of third parties, and cooperate with the investigations of purported unlawful activities.

22b) Editorial Neutrality: TAN provides a forum for the open discussion of a wide variety of subjects, but does not influence editorial control over any particular theory, opinion, ideology, political doctrine, viewpoint or position on any topic in so far as those topics adhere to the rules set forth in these Terms and Conditions of Use and the Terms and Conditions of Membership. Furthermore, though operating costs are supported by advertising and promotional revenue, TAN do not officially endorse or promote any commercial product or service.

22c) No Guarantee: TAN makes no claim or warranty, implied or otherwise, that guarantees the available of the free services offered under its domains; including, but not limited to, games, contests, special events/content, chat, and discussion threads.


23) Violation: Violation of any aspect of these Terms and Conditions of Use and the Terms and Conditions of Membership are subject to our Actions for general abuse and violations, or in extreme cases, immediate banning of your username/IP from the domains and/or the removal of your email/password from the database. You agree that, all disputes, of any type, regarding any transgression or disagreement with the policies of TAN, or the decisions of one of TAN or administrative staff are final.


24) Right of Community Management. This is a privately owned discussion board community. TAN reserves the right to take action against any member, or member Posting, which is deemed to be devoted purely to disruption, represents behavior contrary to community building, or in cases where the content is contrary to the core ideals of the Websites. This action may include removal of your Posting and/or complete banning of your username and IP address. TAN reserves the right to eliminate or edit any content deemed inappropriate for the discussion boards, news network or any affiliated sites. TAN reserves the right to establish limits on topics that may be discussed if, in their opinion, the discussion of those topics attract an audience that is counterproductive to maintaining the ideals set forth in the Terms and Conditions of Use and the Terms and Conditions of Membership.

How To Contact Us:

Should you have other questions or concerns about these legal policies, please send us an email using our Contact Form.

Written queries may be sent to:
The Above Network, LLC
15111 North Hayden Road, Suite 160-156
Scottsdale, AZ 85260.


Business calls for the Internet operations, marketing, public relations, accounting, and financial departments are accepted during normal business hours (9AM to 5PM EST) at: (480) 304-5680.


Bill Irvine a.k.a. "SkepticOverlord" - Chief Executive Officer of The Above Network, LLC
Mark Allin a.k.a. "Springer" - Chief Operations Officer of The Above Network, LLC
Simon Gray - Chief Properties Officer of The Above Network, LLC
Stephen Melzer a.k.a. "Crakeur" - Chief Financial Officer of The Above Network, LLC


(These terms and conditions are subject to change without notice. Please refer to them often to stay up-to-date with our current board policies.)