I'm Ral315; I've been a user since November 2004, began editing in December 2004, and became an administrator in September 2005. I'm running for Arbitration Committee for one simple reason: Because I want to help.

The proceedings of the Arbitration Committee have always interested me, since I first joined Wikipedia. Lately, the Committee has been having a very tough time handling its caseloads. I applaud all remaining Committee members for being able to stick through all the burnout that inevitably happens when dealing with so many disputes. I also applaud all members running for Arbitration Committee this year; anyone willing to run for such a time-consuming position must either be extraordinarily dedicated, or insane. From what I've been told, I belong to the latter group.

In all seriousness, the Arbitration Committee serves an important purpose on Wikipedia: Settling disputes between users, and more often, doling out punishmentsappropriate remedies to unruly users. Such a position needs a strong, unbiased user. I feel that I can fulfill these requirements. I do not plan to decide cases based on my personal beliefs, nor on any other user's personal beliefs. Cases should be decided on the merits of the case alone. Too often, both inside Wikipedia and in the real world, problems are decided on personal beliefs and biases. I will keep bias out of my decisions if I am elected to the Arbitration Committee.

Another part of being an Arbitration Committee member is being available to the community. I am regularly available on Wikimedia IRC channels, and I always try to respond to messages left at my e-mail address and on my talk page.

Finally, I think that to be an effective Arbitration Committee member, one mustn't take arbitration too seriously. The main goal of Wikipedia is to build an encyclopedia. The only reason that the Arbitration Committee should ever punishenact remedies against a user is if the user is so disruptive that corrective action is needed.

If you have any questions that I might help answer, please feel free to leave a message on my talk page, and I will try to answer it as soon as I can. Ral 315 W_S 03:53, 5 October 2005 (UTC) reply

Questions

1. Strong Support-- Sean| Bla ck 00:31, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
2. — Kirill Lok s hin 00:31, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
3. -- a.n.o.n.y.m ^t 00:32, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
4. Support Agnte 00:35, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
5. Support. -- GraemeL ^(talk) 00:39, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
6. Support. User:Zoe| ^(talk) 00:59, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
7. Support. -- Simesa 01:23, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
8. -- ( drini's page ☎ ) 02:01, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
9. Tony Sidaway| Talk 02:04, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
10. Support — Bunchofgrapes ( talk) 02:26, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
11. Support Kit 02:51, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
12. Support. - Mys e kurity 03:31, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
13. Support. Would be among the strongest candidates if not for age.-- ragesoss 03:44, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
14. Support Crotalus horridus ( TALK • CONTRIBS) 04:08, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
15. Zach ^{(Smack Back) Fair use policy} 04:38, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
16. Bobet 04:41, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
17. Support. -- maru (talk) Contribs 05:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
18. Babajobu 05:18, 9 January 2006 (UTC) How can you oppose someone who has demonstrated such selfless commitment to Wikipedia? He'd get it right. reply
19. Support Changed my mind Fred Bauder 05:14, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
20. Support. Good user. Ëvilphoenix ^Burn! 05:22, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
21. Support — Locke Cole • t • c 06:11, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
22. Support. android 79 06:16, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
23. Support Brian | (Talk) 07:02, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
24. Support. — Catherine\ ^talk 07:15, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
25. Support. Sjakkalle (Check!) 07:22, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
26. Support Donar Reiskoffer 07:27, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
27. Support Dalf | Talk 08:28, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
28. Support. -- Kefalonia 09:48, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
29. Support. "one mustn't take arbitration too seriously": I agreeeee. -- Michalis Famelis 10:03, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
30. Support. Adrian Buehlmann 10:06, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
31. Support. Much like dmcdevit. Unflappable. Neutral. -- Woohookitty ^{(cat scratches)} 11:10, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
32. Support -- Nick Boalch ^?!? 11:31, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
33. — Nightstallion (?) 12:46, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
34. Strong support - brilliant user. Oppose age-based voting. -- Cel e stianpower ^háblame 13:25, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    Supposrt Trifon Triantafillidis 13:32, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    • Trifon Triantafillidis does not have suffrage; his first edit was at 09:05, 13 December 2005 (UTC) and he had only 26 edits as of 00:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC). ( caveats) — Cryptic (talk) 15:21, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply

35. Strong support. Oppose ageism. the wub "?!" ^{RFR - a good idea?} 15:57, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    • I should point out my vote would have been a strong support anyway, with or without the opposition. the wub "?!" ^{RFR - a good idea?} 17:36, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply

36. Strong support I oppose ageism, but Ral315's vocally-ageist opposition is not the reason for my vote; his dedication is. Euphoria 16:22, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
37. Support Shows good sense despite young age. -- kingboyk 18:02, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
38. Strong Support Been a very positive contributor to areas of the project which I frequent. -- OntarioQuizzer 19:02, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
39. Support Garion96 (talk) 19:38, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
40. Support Solid contributor -- pgk^{( talk)} 20:39, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
41. Support. — Quarl ^{( talk)} 2006-01-09 21:05 Z
42. Support -- Polaris999 21:51, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
43. Support. Calm, fair, consistent. AnnH ^(talk) 01:35, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
44. Support Rayc 02:46, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
45. Support Andrew_pmk | Talk 02:48, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
46. Support. Given appalling behaviour by certain adults around here, denying Ral315 a chance based on age seems rather dubious. TenOfAllTrades( talk) 02:56, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
47. Support. A very positive contributor. -- Eleassar ^{my talk} 19:54, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
48. Support all users matching the regexp /Ra[u]?l\d\d\d/. Oh, and for real non-silly reasons too. - Fennec (はさばくのきつね) 05:16, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
49. Support more mature than many older editors, and some new blood is needed on Arbcom. Only reservation is "punishment" terminology; goal of process should be protection of the project, never punishment per se. CarbonCopy (talk) 20:18, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
50. Support Prodego ^talk 20:56, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
51. Support. Would probably do a good job. -- G Rutter 20:59, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
52. Support. I am the one who initially nominated Ral315 for adminship, and his RfA was a clear success. Even though Ral315 is much younger than me he is doing a phenomenal job at Wikipedia. I was amazed he wanted to take up the responsibility of being in ArbCom, but if he wants, I will gladly support him. — JIP | Talk 21:53, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
53. Support While the candidate doesn't explicitly mention arbitration strategies, the content of their candidate statement directly addresses the nature and function of the arbitration process. Fifelfoo 22:29, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    Support I think he would do a good job. -- MasK of ThE CARNIVAL 00:46, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    User has less than 150 edits; most likely does not have suffrage. Flcelloguy ( A note?) 02:16, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply

54. Support Palmiro | Talk 11:14, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
55. Support. Andre ( talk) 14:52, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
56. Support, his statement overcomes any concerns I may have had with their experience. — Ian Manka ^{Questions? Talk to me!} 22:16, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
57. Weak support. Civil and constructive, my only concern is relative lack of experience. Zocky 11:35, 12 January 2006 (UTC) reply
58. Support - good policy. -- NorkNork 21:20, 12 January 2006 (UTC) reply
59. support William M. Connolley 22:07, 12 January 2006 (UTC) reply
60. Support. I oppose ageism and candidate is wise beyond his years. Would be an asset to ArbCom. Velvetsmog 01:20, 13 January 2006 (UTC) reply
61. Support Jared 12:03, 13 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    Support Pintele Yid 22:36, 13 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    User did not have 150 edits as of 00:01 January 9, so may not have suffrage. (Bringing this matter up on the talk page, since if including January 9, user has more than 150 edits.) Flcelloguy ( A note?) 23:09, 13 January 2006 (UTC) reply

62. Support. maclean25 00:10, 14 January 2006 (UTC) reply
63. Weak support - I wouldn't normally recommend someone so young take on this role however his statement seems satisfactory. -- Francs 2000 00:20, 14 January 2006 (UTC) reply
64. Support. Statement and answers overcome my concerns about lack of experience. -- William Pietri 01:19, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
65. Support. Seems well adjusted, balanced, and neutral, based on responses to questions (see the questions link in the statement section).. -- Victim of signature fascism | help remove biblecruft 18:56, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
66. Support Seems determined to do the job right. Any hesitation I had is over shadowed by a long history of good contributions. Appears to have more than enough wiki experience regardless of age. He's half my age, and twice as mature. -- Omniwolf 20:20, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
67. Support.- gadfium 23:02, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
68. Support Good candidate. Down with agism! Borisblue 23:33, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
69. Support Tom Harrison ^Talk 04:12, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply
70. Support -- Masonpatriot 05:49, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply
71. Support well-written statements, thoughtful answers. Youngamerican 18:19, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply
72. -- Doc ^ask? 16:40, 17 January 2006 (UTC) reply
73. Support - llywrch 17:24, 17 January 2006 (UTC) reply
74. Support Like his answers. Septentrionalis 04:26, 18 January 2006 (UTC) reply
75. Support. PedanticallySpeaking 16:50, 18 January 2006 (UTC) reply
76. Support Jacqui ^★ 21:00, 19 January 2006 (UTC) reply
77. Support No reservations. Hamster Sandwich 17:00, 20 January 2006 (UTC) reply
78. Support per Omniwolf. — Josiah Rowe ( talk • contribs) 07:26, 21 January 2006 (UTC) reply
79. Support. Answers look good to me. -- SCZenz 17:57, 21 January 2006 (UTC) reply
80. Support Flcelloguy ( A note?) 02:07, 22 January 2006 (UTC) reply
81. Support I'm reasured about the future of the Signpost. JesseW, the juggling janitor 06:19, 22 January 2006 (UTC)
82. Support dave souza 10:52, 22 January 2006 (UTC) reply
83. Support KTC 12:07, 22 January 2006 (UTC) reply
84. Support -- Angr ( tɔk) 17:07, 22 January 2006 (UTC) reply

1. Good user, but a couple of the answers to questions concern me, and I'd rather he focused on keeping us with our regular Signpost fix. Ambi 00:10, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
2. Michael Snow 00:13, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
3. Oppose inexperience. David | explanation | Talk 00:15, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
4. Cryptic (talk) 00:22, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
5. – Quadell ^{( talk) ( bounties)} 00:33, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
6. -- Jaranda ^{wat's sup} 00:47, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
7. Oppose. Carbonite | Talk 00:59, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
8. Oppose. Some questions, particuarly regarding age, concern me. I hope this does not come accross as patronising; it wasn't meant to. Batmanand 01:20, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
9. Oppose based on experience. JYolkowski // talk 01:23, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
10. Oppose too young -- Angelo 01:45, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
11. Oppose -- Jeffrey O. Gustafson - Shazaam! - <*> 01:59, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
12. Oppose Sarah Ewart 02:53, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
13. Oppose. I don't mind being patronising. I oppose children as arbitrators. Grace Note 03:03, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
14. Oppose Very inexperienced. freestylefrappe 04:37, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
15. — Dan | talk 04:44, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
16. Oppose Rx StrangeLove 04:48, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
17. Oppose Per Fred Bauder. 172 04:49, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
18. Very reluctant oppose due to a couple of question answers. -- AySz88^ - ^ 05:52, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
19. Oppose per Ambi.-- cj | talk 05:54, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
20. Oppose don't believe children should be abritrators, sorry, -- Crunch 05:56, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
21. Oppose not much there - there - yet. Good decisions come from experience. Benjamin Gatti 06:01, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
22. Oppose Per above. Ban e s 09:47, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
23. Oppose not because he's too young, but because I know a bullshit artist when I see one TrafficBenBoy 11:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
24. Oppose - Inexperience - Mackensen (talk) 11:18, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
25. Oppose sad to oppose this one, answers to questions however make me too unsure of where candidate would stand.   ALKIVAR ™ 13:22, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
26. Oppose.  Grue  14:05, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
27. Oppose Crunch and Grace Note's age-ist votes, but also oppose bcz I can't see a single reason to support. Statements read nicely, but all I see is a façade. Pretty icing on a styrofoam cake. Tom e r ^talk 14:18, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
28. Oppose, statement is too frivolous and seems to self-contradict in a few spots. R adiant _>|< 14:40, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
29. Oppose -- Thorri 17:32, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
30. Oppose. Weak. Soo 17:54, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
31. Splash ^talk 23:14, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
32. Oppose. -- HK 23:15, 9 January 2006 (UTC) reply
33. Oppose cautious vote, statement and answers hard to make sense of. Chick Bowen 02:26, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
34. older≠ wiser 02:48, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
35. Oppose for IAR stance. — Simetrical ( talk •  contribs) 02:56, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
36. Oppose. Punish? No. Avriette 06:01, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
37. E Pluribus Anthony | talk | 12:51, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
38. Oppose, inexperienced. HGB 19:08, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
39. Oppose, for similar reasons to those already expressed. Rje 19:18, 10 January 2006 (UTC) reply
40. Oppose for fundamental misunderstanding of the purpose of ArbCom. It's purpose is not punishment. Un focused 00:44, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
41. Oppose (Note: Vote only reflects suitability of candidate to the role, and does not reflect overall contributions or personally.) - Mailer Diablo 01:52, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
42. Oppose. siafu 03:51, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
43. Oppose Mature Wikipedian with well thought out policy (or a lot of BS). But I must Oppose because of his answers to the questions which reveal how unready he is. -- Rmrfstar 04:55, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
44. Oppose. enochlau ( talk) 05:23, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
45. Oppose. -- Masssiveego 07:43, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply
46. oppose Kingturtle 08:39, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    Oppose per LawAndOrder All in 22:54, 11 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    • All in does not have suffrage; he registered at 02:46, 24 November 2005 (UTC) and he had only 112 edits as of 00:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC). ( caveats) — Cryptic (talk) 01:42, 12 January 2006 (UTC) reply

47. Oppose Rangek 02:13, 12 January 2006 (UTC) reply
48. Oppose based on answers; doesn't seem to take this "seriously" enough. -- nae'blis _(talk) 20:29, 12 January 2006 (UTC) reply
49. Oppose -- Davidpdx 13:16, 13 January 2006 (UTC) reply
50. Oppose Dr. B 17:49, 13 January 2006 (UTC) reply
51. Reluctant oppose of an impressive contributor Why? ++ Lar: t/ c 01:34, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
52. -- Boothy443 | trácht ar 06:00, 15 January 2006 (UTC) reply
53. Oppose. Inexperienced. ( SEWilco 06:44, 15 January 2006 (UTC)) reply
54. Oppose. Too new. For ArbCom, too much affinity for IRC. Superm401 | Talk 00:14, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply
55. Oppose. Preaky 00:52, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply
56. Weak Oppose. Only voting due to close race. Just have a bad vibe, nothing more concrete than that. crazyeddie 04:29, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply
57. Oppose, inexperience. See my vote rationale. Talrias ( t | e | c) 16:49, 16 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    Oppose, insufficient grasp of WP policy. The Witch 15:47, 17 January 2006 (UTC) reply

    • The Witch does not have suffrage; he registered at 08:56, 18 December 2005 (UTC) and he had only 1 edit as of 00:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC). ( caveats) — Cryptic (talk) 16:18, 17 January 2006 (UTC) reply

58. Oppose. Jitse Niesen ( talk) 22:59, 17 January 2006 (UTC) reply
59. Oppose. I'd like to see more experience with the 'pedia's article content -- JWSchmidt 01:31, 19 January 2006 (UTC) reply
60. Oppose, insufficient article writing. Wyss 16:09, 19 January 2006 (UTC) reply
61. Bratsche ^{talk | Esperanza} 05:20, 20 January 2006 (UTC) reply
62. Oppose. Pschemp | Talk 07:44, 21 January 2006 (UTC) reply
63. Oppose. JSIN 01:54, 22 January 2006 (UTC) reply
64. Oppose WLD 17:49, 22 January 2006 (UTC) reply