[Dazrin]

Originally Posted by John F

why not suggest we bring it back without the quibbling.

That's what a lot of the changes were for in the NLBC. Most of the first section of rules was added to the NLBC just for this reason. Getting away from quibbling is a pipe dream apparently as evidenced in this thread and in the Classics thread.

Spoiler:

The entire point of this section of rules from the NLBC was to avoid squabbling. It worked for a good time and we had some great discussions for over two years. Unfortunately, I know both issybird and CRussel both had to deal with issues related to this on nearly a monthly basis. I wish it had worked better but that's what it is.

General:

• We want the book club to be a friendly and positive forum for everyone who would like to participate. With that in mind, all posts must meet the MR guidelines and should follow these additional guidelines for the book club:
  • No wrangling about nominations, unless a book is clearly ineligible (see eligibility requirements) all nominations are accepted. That does not mean all nominations will be seconded/thirded.
  • Electioneering is fine but please keep it civil and respectful. Please avoid disparaging a nomination and judgmental words in general. No negative campaigning.
• Anything directly related to the contents of the book should be held and posted in the Discussion Thread when it is available.
  • Please keep specific comments on the book out of the nomination and voting threads unless directly related to those activities.
• Discussion related to background information, such as author information or events that may have shaped the author's writing, may go in the voting thread after the book is selected but prior to the discussion thread.
  • Discussion of availability, different formats, additional locations to acquire the book, and temporary deals, etc. can go in the voting thread.

The other change that was made was the "themes" versus "genres". The main reason for this change was because many of us were sick and tired of people arguing what a "classic" is or whether or not a book is a "mystery" or a "thriller" or "fantasy" vs "science fiction" or .... It became very tiring for many of us. Calling the categories "themes" let us (mostly) bypass that type of quibbling.

If you look at the rest of the rules, you'll see that they are all about how the club runs (votes, nominations, etc.) with the exception of 2 items:

[*]Books are not eligible if they have been fully nominated in the last 6 months.

Which was a holdover from a particular quibbling issue in the MRBC.

And:

[*]Anyone may vote but please refrain from voting if you are not willing to participate regardless of what book wins.

Which was also an issue of contention from the MRBC.