Wikipedia:Requests for bureaucratship/Useight

Useight

Voice your opinion (talk page) (6/2/3); Scheduled to end 21:42, 13 June 2008 (UTC)

Useight (talk · contribs · blocks · protections · deletions · page moves · rights · RfA) - Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce myself. You probably know me from Wikipedia:Highly Active Users or have seen me around WP:RFA. I have been a Wikipedian since 2006 and an admin since late last year. Now, of course I am aware that being an admin for a year is often preferred before becoming a bureaucrat, a time span I have yet to reach (logging six months of service), but this comment by WJBscribe, stating that he was going to be unable to perform any bureaucrat functions for a month, along with the surrounding discussion, inspired me to employ my services to help offset the shortage of active bureaucrats.

Aside from that, I am an active regular at RFA, monitor the inappropriate username reports, and clerk at WP:CHU. In order to serve Wikipedia in another capacity, I present myself for scrutiny. Useight (talk) 05:08, 3 June 2008 (UTC)

Questions for the candidate

Dear candidate, thank you for offering to serve Wikipedia as a Bureaucrat. You may wish to answer the following optional questions to provide guidance for participants:

1. Have you read the discussions on when to promote and not promote? What do you understand the criteria for promotion to be?

A. As a regular at Wikipedia Talk:Requests for adminship, I read all discussions there and participate in most. The key decisive factor for promotion is consensus. This consensus is often, but not always, shown by the community demonstrating at least 70-75% in favor of the candidate becoming an administrator. However, RFA is more of an art than a science, hence this 70-75% range is usually considered the discretionary range. Since RFA is not a vote, but a pursuit for consensus, the words behind the numbers carry more weight than the numbers themselves. Similarly, an RFB also has a gray area for consensus, but this is closer to the 85%-90% range.

2. How would you deal with contentious nominations where a decision to promote or not promote might be criticized?

A. In these cases, there are several options. A common one is to begin a discussion with other bureaucrats. Not a discussion as to the candidate's merits, but a discussion to gauge whether there exists a consensus to promote. Due to the sysopping of an editor being one of the few extremely difficult actions to reverse, there is no need to jump the gun on this process. Another option is extending the RFA in order to get more community input, but this option is rarely used.

If, in the hypothetical world posed by some optional questions, a 'crat chat is not an option, I tend to be conservative in nature and would take my time, cautiously weighing the discussion to ascertain whether a consensus to promote exists. I would rather err on the side of caution.

3. Wikipedians expect bureaucrats to adhere to high standards of fairness, knowledge of policy, and the ability to engage others in the community. Why do you feel you meet those standards?

A. I think that I have indeed demonstrated these traits. I have exhibited fairness and knowledge of policy throughout my interaction and communication with others, both resolving disputes and answering questions. My collaborative work at Wikipedia:Highly Active Users and, to a much lesser degree, WikiProject Bowling, both of which I started, are good examples of my ability to engage others. I've also always been quick to respond to messages left on my talk page, as I believe quick, civil, communication to be a key trait in an administrator, let alone a bureaucrat.

4. Do you have the time and do you have the desire to visit WP:RFA, WP:B/RFA, and/or WP:CHU on a regular basis to attend to those requests?

A. Definitely. I visit RFA and CHU many times daily. Obviously, there's not often a backlog of RFAs that need closing, but I've seen CHU get behind frequently and I'd like to help cut down on that wait time. As for flagging bot accounts, I must admit that bots are not my forte, but I'd be glad to help out any way I could if my assistance was needed.

Optional question from myself

5. Why are you starting this RFB right now?

A. Yes, I know it's a little strange to ask yourself an optional question, but I wanted to say something about this and here seemed to be the best place. As I mentioned above, a comment by WJBscribe here was my real motivation along with two discussions around that same time on WT:RFA, one regarding the shortage of active bureaucrats, and the other debunking the belief that all RFB candidates needed twelve months of experience as an admin. However, as you probably noticed, that comment was made on May 17th and now it is June 6th. There was no rush. I initially thought that Pedro was going to RFB, so I'd just wait. But then EVula submitted an RFB. Once that one ended, I created my RFB page with the intention of transcluding on Friday when I knew I had hours on end to be available to answer questions. Then, 28 hours after I created this page, Anthony's was created (I knew because I had it watchlisted for a while). This put me in a between a rock and a hard place, because I really didn't want to look like I was trying to daisy-chain or bandwagon jump. The timing just turned out the way it did.

Optional questions from Malinaccier (talk)

6. As shown in your "Associates" area on your userpage, you are a fairly active admin coach. As you are probably aware, (through multiple discussions on WT:RFA) there is a certain controversy over whether coaching should be allowed for reasons such as that it is a way to game the system and polish up a user's resume. What is your stance on this, and how will this affect your RFA closures as a bureaucrat?

A. An excellent question that brings up a sometimes controversial issue: coaching. My stance on whether coaching is "gaming the system" or not, is that it's not. I find it to be an effective way of learning what is required of an admin, how admins should act, what policies are what, etc, by interacting and learning directly from someone else. I can see where the opposite camp is coming from, though, in that the candidate may be trying to "fast track" to adminship. My personal stance on this issue won't come into play when closing RFAs because, as a bureaucrat, I won't be assessing the candidate nor the value of his/her coaching. I will instead be closing the RFA from a neutral perspective, focusing on the outcome of the community's consensus.

6a. How would you close the RFA if it was in the discretionary zone and most opposes were because of the user's participation in admin coaching?

A.I'd want to see the actual RFA for more details, but given only what I have, (and I hope I don't get demolished by the other of the two schools of thought regarding coaching), I would likely close the RFA as successful. Obviously there are going to be slightly differing opinions regarding what types of opposes carry more weight, but I don't feel that an oppose such as, "Oppose. Editor was admin coached." is on the same tier as "Oppose. Gross incivility." because opposing soley due to the candidate having been coached doesn't seem to be in regard to the candidate's merits as other possiple reasons for opposing, hence I wouldn't give it quite as much weight. However, if the community consensus shifts enough against coaching, I, as a bureaucrat would exact that consensus and would even cease admin coaching others. But now I've gone on longer than I wanted.

Optional question from [[

:User:EJF|EJF]] ([[::User talk:EJF|talk]] · [[::Special:Contributions/EJF|contribs]])

7. How would you have closed this assuming that you had closed it at the time of withdrawal?

A. As this RFA was progressing, I knew it would join the likes of ^demon's and Danny's. Considering that I had opposed that particular RFA, I would not be the one to close it. However, let's assume for the sake of the question that I had not participated. At the time of the withdrawal, the tally was at 299-85-17, or just under 78%. While according to the numbers, this is higher than the typical discretionary range. However, the words behind the numbers mean much more than the numbers themselves. As I followed the RFA, near the time it was withdrawn, several editors were withdrawing their support and opposes were being added fairly quickly. Additionally, a fair number of the supporters comments were not exceedingly weighty, such as "One of my favorite contributors", "Duh", or said nothing besides "Support". Due to these factors, and again assuming I hadn't participated in this particular RFA, I would have closed it as "No consensus."

General comments

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Please keep discussion constructive and civil.

Discussion

Support

1. First to support! He looks like a good candidate to me. Would make a good bureaucrat. :) - DiligentTerrier (and friends) 22:04, 6 June 2008 (UTC)
2. Strong Support I've seen Useight do many administrative actions around Wikipedia. Regarding his answers,his contributions, and his activity here at Wikipedia, I think he can be a very good bureaucrat.--RyRy5 (talk) 22:08, 6 June 2008 (UTC)
3. Strong Support - I see nothing in this user's history that would make me think he wouldn't be able to handle crat duties. He has a solid knowledge of UAA, WP:U and RfA. Wisdom89 _{(T / ^C)} 22:40, 6 June 2008 (UTC)
4. Support. Time does not really bother me in Useight's case; I've always seen him as an intelligent, polite, and smart editor who is looking out for the good of the project. I liked his answers to my questions, and I appreciated the honesty in the fact that he stated he would close the RFA mentioned successfully. Despite the fact that this will probably not pass, I will support this in hopes that others will realize that 1 year is not a requirement, but instead is what a few editors believe a candidate should have. Good luck, Useight. Malinaccier (talk) 22:41, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

   The answer to number 7 was also good. Malinaccier (talk) 23:49, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

5. Support I've looked through Useight contribs, logs, talk page and such, and I see nothing that concerns me. He has a good balance of the various namespace edits and is a well-rounded editor. The only thing that confused me; why are most or all of your recent edits marked as minor? Juliancolton ^{Tropical Cyclone}

   To answer your question regarding minor edits, I've used Help:Minor edit, where it says, "A major edit is a version that should be reviewed to confirm that it is consensual to all concerned editors." A lot of my edits have involved fixing grammar, spelling, or punctuation; issuing warnings; asking and answering questions; most of which I would consider "minor." Perhaps I have been too stringent, I'm always open to suggestions and I can easily change the way I use the "minor edit" checkbox. Useight (talk) 00:32, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

   Ah, ok. It just seems to me that, for example, adding a comment isn't really a minor edit, but that's just my opinion. Not a big deal, no worries. :) Juliancolton ^{Tropical Cyclone} 00:45, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

6. Support Hell, we really need to clear the CHU backlog so another crat even if purely for that would be great. (note: I'd say yes anyway) Sexy Sea Bassist 00:23, 7 June 2008 (UTC)
7. Support Dlohcierekim 01:11, 7 June 2008 (UTC)
8. Support. A highly active user who will help to clear the CHU backlog which I'm sure will only grow as more people jump on the SUL bandwagon. xenocidic (talk) 01:34, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

Oppose

1. Oppose. I'm very very sorry to do this. I'm only opposing you because I feel that you have the same level of experience as I do on Wikipedia, and I would oppose myself at the moment. You are an excellent editor, a conscientious admin, and overall, a superb contributor. But it's too soon (regardless of WJBscribe's diff). Sorry Useight, don't take it too personally, and try again in the future if 'cratship is what you are sincerely desiring. Keeper | 76 | Disclaimer 22:24, 6 June 2008 (UTC)
2. Oppose Also per the time issue, sorry. - Dureo (talk) 22:34, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

   And this is why I dislike some wiki rules. Does the candle that burns twice as brigh have to wait a whole year before it is allowed to burn out? (not that I am implying he will burn out. Bad analogy) Sexy Sea Bassist 00:51, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

   How exactly does time play a factor here considering Useight's longevity? It's just an arbitrary ad hoc criteria. Look at the answers to the questions and the contributions. Wisdom89 _{(T / ^C)} 01:03, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

Neutral

1. I would oppose but I can't be bothered to dig around to find a few iffy looking diffs I could claim was evidence of bad judgement. I don't think you'd make a great crat for a number of reasons, including experience, level of clue, etc, but you're probably well intentioned enough that you won't make a bad one. I don't like that you advocate using "crat chats" which (as I've said before) are pointless and useless - you just end up having to "interpret" the "consensus" of those crats and really, if you have to sit around and discuss whether consensus exists - it doesn't. And the fact that you participate in coaching doesn't sit too well with me either. Yeah. Naerii - Talk 22:14, 6 June 2008 (UTC)
2. Perhaps I can support this – I am somewhat worried that Useight may possibly be a little too "mathematical" and may be more interested in the numbers than the weight of the opinions. RfA should not be a vote and consensus is the key. What concerns me most is the gaming of RfA here, although it could be argued that Useight's knowing how "beat the system" means he is familiar with what the community expects and is in touch with current standards. From what I have seen elsewhere, he seems like a nice guy and there are no civility problems. He doesn't seem to be too much of a "social-networker sysop" or "career mandarin" and still contributes to improving the encyclopaedia. I'll sleep on this and hopefully will be able to support. Regards, EJF (talk) 22:30, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

   You are right on that first note, for sure. I'm definitely left-brained. I do love statistics and numbers. And that's great for figuring out how many games to bowl (by the way, I score the highest on my second game, statistically speaking), but isn't how I'd determine community consensus. I'm familiar enough with the inner workings of RFA to know that it's not a "Hey, you got 73% support, you pass!". However, I wasn't showing Razorflame how to "game RFA", but instead was sharing my knowledge of what kinds of experience levels are typically required at RFA. I'm fully aware that it's not the quantity, but the quality, as I was dinged many, many months ago on an unsuccessful RFA for having too many edits in which all I did was add a comma. Useight (talk) 22:44, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

3. I find myself in the (unique to me, I think) position of agreeing with Naerii. While I don't think at all that you'll make a bad crat, I don't at the moment think you'll make a particularly good one. I assume (correct me if I'm wrong) that the crat area you'll participate in the most is RFA, and that's the one crat area I don't really trust you yet in; I've seen you and me on the opposite sides in too many RFAs. As N says, "if you have to sit around and discuss whether consensus exists, it doesn't". I also don't really like the whole concept of admin coaching (as opposed to new admin training) - RFA is a test of trustworthiness, and I don't think that's something that can be taught. However, nothing I see is reason to oppose at the moment, and I'm more than willing to be persuaded either way. — iridescent 00:19, 7 June 2008 (UTC)

   I, too, initially thought I'd spend more time at RFA, but after getting to know CHU, I think I'd be spending more time over there actually. How many times have I checked out RFA and saw some RFAs that had finished and needed 'crat closing? Not nearly as often as I see username requests waiting to be fulfilled. I'll definitely be available to help out on both sides, and I'm not going to disappear from WT:RFA or from participating in RFAs, and I do plan to close RFAs, but I think CHU could use my help more. Useight (talk) 00:42, 7 June 2008 (UTC)