First, let me say that I, like many others, was elected into tORG under the new system. To be honest, I was slightly frustrated by the system that was put in place, but I also realized that something needed to be done, and so far, I'm very glad the system is in place. Although it is not perfect, I see a big difference in the posting between tORG and the SunDeck. This doesn't mean only good posters are in tORG and only bad posters are in the SunDeck. It's a little bit like baseball--sometimes, a better player is in AAA, but he isn't getting called up because he needs to prove that he can be consistently good before he gets the call up. If you consistently make good posts in the SunDeck, you will be noticed, and if you want, you will have a chance to join tORG.

As a member of tORG, I am able to read the discussions about all the nominees, and I see a lot of common themes come up that result in a poster not getting elected into tORG. I've seen people make very good posts but not granted ORG access as a result of just one or two bad posts. This is why I'd like to give some tips to help some of the good posters on SunDeck become a little bit better and hopefully result in an election to tORG.

Here are things that I, as a voter, and many others in tORG love to see:
1. Use decent grammar and spelling. Right or wrong, some people are very picky about this sort of thing. No one is expecting perfection, but just as an example, I have seen someone get negative votes as a result in typing in all capital letters. Please use a line break every once in a while, and try to avoid run-on sentences. If you completely butcher the spelling of several players' names, that doesn't look good either.
2. If you're being sarcastic and/or facetious, try using emoticons. When we review your posts, we often don't have time to review the entire threads, and as a result, we miss a lot of the context of your post. Therefore, a sarcastic or facetious post can come off as mean or stupid instead of funny or clever. Personally, I have more of a dry humor, and a lot of my posts get lost in interpretation. Since I started adding an emoticon every once in a while, despite how silly I feel, my posts have been much better received.
3. Don't have an ulterior motive. If you're constantly plugging your website or badgering people to click on links, it will seem like you want to be in tORG as a marketing ploy. No one likes salespeople, and if you're a lawyer, I'd recommend not revealing that until after being elected.
4. Don't complain about RedsZone nor its policies/procedures. This might be the biggest one. Things are the way they are, and they're not going to change unless those in charge find something that seems like a better idea. Feel free to make suggestions in this forum, but if you unproductively complain, this will not be well-received AT ALL. If you're just going to complain about tORG, why would you want to join anyway?
5. Try to avoid controversial topics. This should go without saying, but don't try to make a ridiculous metaphor that compares Bill Bray's pitching mechanics to an abortion. Don't touch on the topics of religion or politics at all (hopefully you read everything when you registered). Don't bring up the race of a player, especially if it's your way of 'backing up' a claim. The rest should be self-explanatory, but if you're not sure, I'd just recommend not posting it.
6. Please limit your one-line posts. For example, "Valentin sux!" will never be a good post, even if it's true. "Edinson Volquez is awesome!" and "lol" are also not good posts. These lines are best used in a chat room.
7. Ignore bad posts from others. Not all bad posts need commentary. In fact, the less commentary the better. The only thing worse than a bad post is an additional post that quotes said post to point out the lack of quality, resulting in bumping the thread and bringing more attention to it. "This makes no sense!" is probably not a good post.
8. If you're going to use opinions, please provide facts to back it up. People in tORG love seeing data to back up claims. We love to see that the person cares enough about the Reds and RedsZone to educate Reds fans and provide insight. The Old Red Guard does not need more opinions. We're looking for people who can add in quality--not quantity. I think we all know what opinions are like.
9. Avoid coming off as egotistical. If you say something like, "Homer Bailey needs to go to AAA," please don't leave it at that. You nor anyone else on RedsZone is the end-all say-all of these decisions. Either give reasons why he should be demoted (his WHIP looks like Tim Lincecum's ERA might be a serviceable example) or just add a simple 'imho'--you could be surprised how far that can go. "My 12-year-old daughter could manager better than Dusty Baker," is another example of a bad post (unless you are able to show some of her superior management skills).
10. Try to mix in some positive comments. If your posts are always negative (which is fairly appropriate when you consider how the Reds have played lately ), then you will be associated with negative thoughts. Just because we Reds fans have been surrounded by negativity for the past decade or so doesn't mean we want more negativity in our lives. If you want to point out the negative, your post looks much better if you acknowledge the positive. "I don't like Adam Dunn as the Cincinnati Reds left fielder. Granted, he has a .900 OPS for his career, but his defensive blunders negate a lot of that, and I'd prefer to see someone cheaper who is more fundamentally sound and better in the clutch. The Reds give away too many runs on defense, have a problem with stranding runners on base, and the money saved could be used to extend contracts and improve the starting rotation."