Wikipedia:Arbitration Committee Elections December 2010/Candidates/Jclemens/Statement

Jclemens
I submit myself for consideration in the 2010 ArbCom election, because like User:Xeno, I see more empty seats than excellent candidates whom I can support wholeheartedly. I have been an administrator for two years, a contributor since 2006, and established my account before that. My user page lists my interests, major contributions, and recognitions I've received from the community.

If selected as an arbitrator, I pledge the following to the community:


 * Resolve issues that come to the Arbitration Committee's attention rapidly, fairly, and with the least disruptive outcomes possible.
 * Collaboratively learn my role with the rest of the newly elected arbs, dedicating my Wikipedia time and efforts primarily to ArbCom rather than my personal interests.
 * Live by the quote often attributed to Stephen Covey “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, and its hierarchy should be viewed as a necessary evil. Arbitrators must keep the health and progress of the encyclopedia foremost in their minds.  Wikipedia's success depends on welcoming new contributors, recognizing good content work, and maintaining a positive work environment for the other two goals.

My track record shows that I am here to build an encyclopedia and that I remain civil under pressure. While I have been in a number of conflicts over the years, I have learned from each of them, and remain on collaborative working terms with all the unbanned editors with whom I have disagreed.

I have found that mediating disputes, posing policy questions, and discussing meta-issues which affect Wikipedia as a whole is interesting and rewarding. While ArbCom membership has its fair share of downsides, it is my desire to leverage my past experiences to help benefit Wikipedia as a whole.

Like User:Newyorkbrad, I would prefer to articulate views on issues of interest to the community in response to user-posed questions, rather than trying to write an all-encompassing statement.

I use User:Jclemens-public, mostly for uses where SSL is not supported, and have never edited under any other account.