Wikipedia editors of all walks of life, lend me your ears.
My name is James Hare and I am seeking election to the Arbitration Committee.
I have six years of Wikipedia editing experience, as well as over four years of experience as an administrator. In that time, I have seen Wikipedia change tremendously, from a project with limited popularity to what is now a major phenomenon and cultural institution. I have seen Wikipedia's bureaucracy grow, its offerings of access levels become more nuanced and specialized, and its ruleset evolve to handle the challenges that have come as Wikipedia has become one of the most popular websites on the Internet.
During this time, I have learned that the key to surviving on Wikipedia is knowing not to take it too seriously. A website, after all, is no reason to lose sleep at night. As an arbitrator, I would help those undergoing arbitration, and even other arbitrators, put the issues in perspective and figure out how to go forward from there. After all, if something has to end up at the final stage of the dispute resolution process, with no success at the earlier stages, something's gotta give. Whether the issue is resolved with no further complication or it isn't, the goal of each Arbitration Committee action should be to create a more collegial editing environment for the number one pursuit of Wikipedia: the encyclopedia.
To the table I bring my experience as a Wikipedia editor and the personality that defines who I am, for better or worse. If you do not think that is enough, then by all means don't vote for me. But if you would like to give this veteran editor a chance, feel free to grill me with questions. I will do my best to answer them.
Disclosure: My username was User:Messedrocker before I changed it in 2009. After the name change, a vandal took over the old username. Any actions associated with that username were not made by me. Other than this past username, I have not used other usernames on this website.
