1. I have occasionally seen a user with a high network-wide rep (ie has a lot of positive interaction on other SE sites) cause a lot of friction on a site they have recently joined by insisting that "the site is doing it wrong." If this occurs here, and causes trouble with the easy going Mechanics community, how would you handle the situation?

The only way to truly deal with a difference of opinion is to communicate in a rational and respectful way.

MY approach would be to simply interact with that individual and ask questions. We cannot control others belief systems but we can share our own and try and find a middle ground or, at the very least, attempt to find middle ground and a bit of balance and understanding regarding the oppositional belief systems.

2. What, if any, previous moderator (or similar) experience do you have from a different Stack Exchange site, a different website, and/or the real world (e.g. arbitration)?

My relative experience can be summed up with these points.

• I was a drug abuse counselor in the late 80's and early 90's before I dispensed with that career as 'too painful'.

• I have moderated internal company forums for employers.

• I have moderated a couple of public Internet forums in the late 90's

• I have led engineers from team lead to executive level for over 25 years.

My team management experience is the core of my experience. I have been mentored by admirable and amazing communicators throughout my professional life and believe that experience is the root of my understanding and world view that will benefit the site.

3. How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

I would attempt to continue the culture that the Mechanic's site has nurtured, one of tolerance and kindness to others. If we lead by example it's very easy to have the difficult conversation with the individual who is being an outlier.

If that mentality doesn't prevent this type of behavior the alternative is to have a conversation with that individual and help them to understand with we as a collective are trying to achieve, through patience and understanding. Usually, that type of a discussion (from past experience here) is effective and they come around and understand what they are doing. They key to success is remaining patient with a goal of helping them to see the results of their behavior and how that can change for their own good and the good of the site.

4. How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

• The tools of SE can be used to cast a re-open vote.

• The meta site could be leveraged to open a discussion regarding the difference of opinion regarding closing particular questions.

• A one on one debate can occur regarding the difference in belief systems so that the separate subjective ideologies regarding closing questions can be had.

Ultimately, most people are pretty reasonable and just having a simple non-emotional discussion will usually resolve most problems.

5. During Beta (and even today), we pride ourselves as being a very welcoming SE site to newcomers. One might argue that this has a lot to do with the manageable level of questions and new users coming in to the site on a per-day basis. Now that we've graduated, increased site traffic is a realistic possibility. What policies would you adopt to ensure that the site's association with the "Be Nice" moniker remains?

I would continue to wash, rinse and repeat the message of be nice and act accordingly. It's important to be able to remain 'clean'. In other words, if we expect another to behave in a way that we have defined then WE must continue to behave in that way.

It will be important to continue this tradition of 'Be Nice' simply by doing it. My commitment to the site is to continue to interact with individuals within it in a respectable and (hopefully0 enjoyable way. This site has a great reputation and I would do my best to assist in solidifying that reputation.

6. It is a distinct possibility that you would not be able to answer as many questions while moderating. Why do you believe that you could contribute more to the site's overall benefit as a moderator rather than a regular user?

I have backed off considerably from answering questions if you compare my activity from 12 months ago. The site has grown considerably and there are more knowledgeable resources on the site than I regarding much of the subject matter. As well, do to the increased activity the unanswered questions have gone down considerably. When I joined the site unanswered was 87%, as of my last check unanswered questions are at 94%.

My current contributions to the site revolve around editing. I know that the Google SEO metrics reward proper language use, spelling and page activity. As a result, I am focused on the editing and cleanup component more than I am on answering questions. I would continue to edit and improve the site (whether I am elected or not) to hopefully get more traffic and to simply 'make it better'.

7. Moderators, like all humans, are susceptible to fluctuations in the space-time continuum. There will be easy-going periods and times when they are overwhelmed with things in life. More often than not, site moderation will take the backseat. Evidence: of the five moderators on this site throughout Beta, (to my knowledge) only two remain active. How much time do you realistically think you can devote to the site? What would you do if you believe it is difficult to continue with moderation responsibilities in the long run?

I have been concerned about this and have discussions with @roryalsup and @bobcross regarding time footprint.

It seems my current time spend here is far and beyond what is necessary to be a moderator.

IF, I was unable to fulfill my duties I would immediately raise my hand and let EVERYBODY know so an election could be held to fill the vacancy. I take commitments very seriously and would not try and continue to be a mod if I couldn't fulfill the role.

8. We have a high percentage of unanswerable questions that lie in wait for further information/clarification from the asker. This is not always due to laziness or neglect on the OP's part; it can take weeks for them to find the opportunity to collect further details about the problem. As a moderator, what would your policy be towards such questions, and how would you mitigate the issue of accumulation of unanswerable queries on the site?

This is a great question.

Currently, our numbers related to unanswered questions are pretty good, but...I understand what you are saying about closing a question too quickly. I think it's imperative that we continue to be patient in waiting for an OP's response. These people are asking us for help and we, if we are members of this particular SE site, have an obligation to be patient with them so they CAN gather the requested information and get back to us.

This has been a very difficult schism with some of the users who are primary members of other sites that don't have the hurdle of interacting with askers that are not technically familiar with the problem they are having.

Ultimately it will be up to us to educate these SE users to help them to understand this very particular problem here. I like having those conversations and look forward to pushing this conversation fervently. Our focus is on our askers.

9. What mechanical experience do you have, and where did you do the bulk of your learning on the subject?

• Certified Motorcycle Mechanic, 1986

• Former Honda Motorcycle Mechanic (Experience with Multiple Dealerships and 1 independent shop)

-Formal Honda training

• Club Racing in the 1980's

• Helping my son with his Road Racing for 4 years

• On and off pit crew for Foutz Motorsports in Phoenix, Az (Desert on/off road racing)

10. As a moderator, how will you keep your fellow moderators in check?

I'll do my best to have good relationships with my fellow moderators as well as communicate with them regarding any issues that they may have with me or I with them. I am a communicator. I do not allow things to go unspoken. I bring up the difficult topics and hopefully do it in such a way that my listen knows that I have an opinion and that I know I might not be correct in.

CRAP - Communication Resolves All Problems (I live by it)