Q: What do you think is the value of LJ?

It brings people together.

Q: What changes would you like to see LJ make in the next year?

Not a lot, just don't mess anything up. Regain the support of your core userbase, then make improvements.

Q: Why do you want to be the elected representative?

I've been on/am on other, real life advisory committees, and I like it. It's fun. Also, I've been a permanent account holder since 2002 and remember how Live Journal used to be - and miss that.

Q: What do you think are the community's greatest concerns?

Privacy, stability, consistency.

tigersilver asks: But, tell me, what would you really do as a rep? I do like cake, I admit, but I'm an omnivore - I need meat as well as sweet.

If it goes anything like other community participation I've been involved with, there will be an agenda set by SUP a the meetings, and then some time to make comments. My advice to the corporation will include consistent application of the TOS, protection of our privacy, no content restriction, advertising should not be intrusive, the open source tradition should be upheld.

The livejournal advisory committee will also provide input into LJ's charitable work, which is an area where I do have some background as a nonprofit and research administrator. My advice there would be to look at the potential dollars-to-impact return on the investment and a low administration-to-direct-services ratio. In general, I have found grassroots community health projects and neighborhood youth programs are the best at providing this in the US. There are also programs internationally such as the excellent Riverkids Project which has been successful in stopping child trafficking at its source, working directly with parents and kids to provide education and support for a different type of future. Their financials are completely transparent, and would be a gold standard for the type of charitable contribution I would suggest.



WHY JETTE?

1. First!
2. If she wins, there will be cake.






Here is a small sampling of endorsements for my campaign.

smallstages: Besides jette, they are all a bunch of spitters, and one of them even dips snuff. Two of them were wearing filthy dirty underwear upon my arrival -- JUST FILTHY DIRTY UNDERWEAR. One of their children called me fat, and not in a complimentary way. They were all sexist and had John McCain for President stickers on their minvans. One of them was reading the Bible. And all of them pronounced my name wrong (unforgivable!).

But when I went to jette's house, she didn't spit in my presence even once, and just happened to be reading selections from the Koran, the Upanishads, the Talmud, the New Testament, Lady Chatterly's Lover, and The Anarchist Cookbook all at once (all of them in their original languages except The Anarchist Cookbook, which she was reading in Icelandic just for fun).

She was wearing a fashionable outfit made by well-paid workers to whom she rents her guest bedroom on select summer weekends. Her children offered to make me waffles, pronounced my name right, and hung my jacket up on a hanger made of plastic recycled in their own backyard, a process no doubt taught to them by jette.

gordonzola: I'll be voting jette.

She's an awesome person on LJ and irl. She's raised children so she can deal with anything the LJ community can throw at her. She lives close enough to the Russian part of SF that she will know how to deal with LJ's owners. And the very first time I met her she came bearing mixed drinks!

Seriously though, she wants to be on the advisory board and she wants to do what she can. I think jette understands the positive things that online communities can do. She's been on LJ longer than me and I trust her to do as good a job as anyone possibly can on that stacked deck of a group she's running for.

jimbojones:

(Jette is)
1. a longstanding LJ citizen
2. someone who gives a shit
3. agenda-free (not a former LJ employee / Six Apart lover / Six Apart hater / etc)
4. like, seriously MILFy
5. even-keeled, level-headed, and not at all given to crazy half-cocked flamewars

Hi.

I'm running for the Advisory Board for LiveJournal.

The reasons I decided I would be a good candidate are:

1) I have been an active user of LiveJournal for over 5 years. I established my primary LiveJournal account in October 2001. In that time I have brought many users into LiveJournal (ah, who remembers invite codes). I have helped develop software clients that work with LiveJournal (iJournal, Xjournal, NewsAccess). I have started several communities, some of which prosper today without my participation (con_central)

2) I have been working researching and developing in the technology area of "Social Networking" for about 20 years. My experience as a net-based user of network based social tools goes back 30 year. (Writing and running BBS software in Basic on an Apple ][ in 1979. Go, go Gadget 300 baud modems!) I work in the software industry as an engineer. I understand how software is put together and what the business end of the software life cycle is. I'm also a user and want to be able to use LiveJournal.

3) I feel I have a balanced view on the topics. I believe strongly in the freedom of speech. At the same time I am the parent of a toddler and am strongly concerned on giving parents working tools necessary to meet their needs for filtering content. I strongly acknowledge that LiveJournal is a business that offers resources to many countries and many legal jurisdictions that may not share the same freedoms. As a result, to keep the service alive, some concessions need to be made that will ultimately be unpleasing to some. Finally, I believe that the end user is the customer. This is the person who will choose to use the service or find an alternative. Being honest, fair, and open with the end user is the most important way to keep them feeling part of the process and not driven to find those alternative services.

4) I am for the most part... sane. My primary journal (for the most part) is open to the public. I filter comments from those who I don't have on my flist. My posts span the range from family updates, technical observations, and the occasional rant, drivel, or (perish the thought) pointless meme.

I don't consider myself the average user. But I strongly consider myself a typical user. And I think that in itself is what we need as a representative on the Advisory Board.

No, funny pictures this time. No begging for support here.

If you support my nomination please comment using (at least) the phrase: "I support this nomination"

Thank you.

Edit:
With well over 100 comments, I have been approved as a candidate on the final ballot and thank everyone who has supported this nomination. I'd thank everyone individually in the thread below, but would like to keep it as free as possible for easy counting by the staff. P.S. please feel free to tell others that they can keep adding nomination support to the comment lists in support all week.

I have made a post in my own journal where I welcome questions, issues, and discussion of what the next step is in this election process.

Thank you again.

+ I have been an active LiveJournal member for over seven years.

+ In that time I have made over 8,000 journal entries and 18,000 comments.

+ I have also created and maintained several communities.

+ I am committed to keeping LiveJournal an open forum for people to meet, communicate and share their lives.

VOTE POSTHASTE! :) I will not let you down!

Please support me for the English-language post on the LiveJournal Advisory Board.

Yes, I'm the Tron Guy. That's not all I bring to the table, though:

• I've been an LJ member since 2002. I can't say I've made as many journal entries as some, but I think that I know how things work as well as anyone who has.
  
• I've followed all of the controversies that LJ has had to deal with since that time, and understand how they should have been handled in order to avoid the undesirable consequences that happened in the real world.
  
• I've been around the Internet and its precursors since 1987. I understand intimately how the net works, and how people interact with and on it.
  
• I'm a Professional Registered Parliamentarian. I've been involved with organizations and their governance for over 30 years, and have a lot of experience in what makes things work well.
  
• I believe that LJ should keep its users in mind, first and foremost - not the advertisers or their concerns. That doesn't mean that they don't count; it just means that they should realize that it's the average user that makes the site worth advertising on in the first place.
  

If you think these things are important, then I ask for your support and your vote. Thanks.

Hello, I'm rosicrucian, but you may also call me Felicia, if you'd like. I would like to nominate myself for the Livejournal Advisory Board.

Why do I feel I'd be a good fit?

I am dedicated to Livejournal. Though this is not my original account I started with, my first livejournal account was created October 7th, 2000. Since then, I have updated on an almost daily to multiple times per day basis for almost eight years. Almost four-thousand entries later, we have seen each other grow and evolve into what we are today. And it is because of this that I will fight tooth and nail for Livejournal to what you, the users, want it to be.

My account has been paid consistently since around 2003, but I have always fought for the desire of free account holders to be able to access this site in the ways they would prefer. I firmly believe that while paid accounts are nice perks, free users are the main generators of content and should be treated on a level that acknowledges this. As such, I would like to work towards healing the wounds and alienation that Livejournal has left a large portion of the userbase feeling.

I would also like to continue to promote the free communication of voices and sharing of materials that Livejournal is so well known for. This is the community that attracted me to Livejournal originally, as a meek teenager with an a keen interest in fandom. Eight years later, partially into my twenties, this is still the most beautiful part of the Livejournal experience.

As for my credentials, I have also done volunteer work on the support boards to help users make the most of their Livejournal experience. Off the internet I have volunteered for and raised money for several non-profit organizations, as well. An example to show how completely dedicated I am to what I believe, I have stayed awake for over 48 hours straight to earn over $300 for a charity singlehandedly. I have also helped organize peaceful demonstrations that have resulted in over two-hundred attendees. Lastly, I am also held in extremely high regard at my job, where I hold several master keys and am frequently advised for advice. I am no-nonsense and all about what I can do to help people. In this case, it would be you, the Livejournal users.

So vote for me, rosicrucian, and I certainly won't let you down!

I'm throwing my hat into the ring.

I've been an active LJ user since June 2000, when I joined as reive; I migrated to rm in 2003; and it seems silly to say LJ means a lot to me. I've met many incredible people here, including my partner.

I have been active in speaking out on LJ policy throughout the strikethrough, boldthrough and other controversies and am proud to consider myself a member of many of the constituencies affected by much of the recent upheaval. These include, but aren't limited to, fandom, academia, and creative professionals.

I feel that I am in a unique position to have LJ listen to my perspective on behalf of the user base because of the diversity of my background. On one hand, I write fanfiction, but on the other, the publisher of my professional work advertises with LiveJournal on my behalf. This may give my voice a unique legitimacy with the powers that be, and I feel I've already been effective in establishing ties with some staff members who have come to me seeking opinions and clarifications on user perceptions of both the strikethrough situation and the edited interests list concern.

I've been an active Internet user since 1990, worked for an early, high-profile BBS and have experience with both policy issues and the weird nature of being both part of the community and connected to the authority of the site. My professional background includes journalism, marketing and public relations (again, allowing me to hear LJ's concerns effectively and argue for user rights in terms they can understand and see the corporate benefits of), although these days I work as an actor and a writer.

I'm committed to LJ continuing to offer a free accounts and allowing, encouraging and celebrating free expression to the fullest legal extent available.

LJ shouldn't be a parent, but a forum.

Policy needs to be clear, easy to understand and enforced with an equal hand.

At the end of the day, LJ users provide the content which brings the page views which generates the revenues. We deserve to be accorded the respect that should come with being the bedrock on which the LJ business model is based.

ETA: Thank you for putting me on the ballot so quickly. If you have any questions about me, my candidacy, my LJ history, where I stand on the issues, etc., please feel free to ask me here.

Naturally, you should vote for the wonderful me, halfmilk!

I'm nice to a fault, have lived on LJ for years (and years... and years...)

I've been everywhere, a lot of people know me, whether or not they want to.

Despite being trapped in many dramas, I still manage to not have an ED page, and that should be an accomplishment within itself.

Plus, I'm pregnant, and don't we all take pity on a nice pregnant woman from time to time? :)

Also, I don't talk too much nor give out promises I'll likely never keep. ;)

And I'm not a psychopath who worries about other peoples' choices in life, unless they're actually harming themselves, unlike the loons who've flown in here! Golly, but the things that happen when I'm not looking. Some of you really need help! Please seek some. :)

Disclaimer: I do not wish to force abortions on anyone, but feel that they should be available for people who really should not breed. Some examples can be found in the comments here. For everyone else, I suggest babies! Whether it be a baby human, a baby puppy, or just a jar of baby food, for those who still need to grow up. :)

I would like to nominate myself for the new advisory committee.

I think that with my long standing use of Livejournal, almost 7 years, I have a unique breadth of the issues that Livejournal has faced and the changes it has taken on over the years.

I have seen Livejournal start as a small journaling service based in Seattle, WA and become the huge user base which is based very internationally. I've survived server slow downs, changes in management and ownership, as well as seen the the more recent changes within the community.

I'm on the Livejournal service several times a day and am an active member of the community, mainly through commenting.

I think that Livejournal has changed a lot of its direction in recent times and I feel like with my knowledge of the user base as it's changed and my own opinions on the ways in which Livejournal has begun to maneuver in regards to its users, I can be a powerful asset to the Livejournal community through the Advisory Board.

I announce my candidacy on behalf of the thousands of Internet Photographers and Models on LiveJournal. LiveJournal has become one of the largest and best outlets for the photographic arts, as well as other forms of artistic expression. To have an advisory board without artistic input would be a disservice to the community.

I've been an active member of LiveJournal since 2003 and regularly participate both artistic as well as discussion and debate communities. I have and continue to maintain and moderate a number of communities, both high-volume as well as smaller ones.

I've also been involved with the Internet, and the networks that were to become the Internet since the early 1980's, having worked on and help define some of the earlier store-and-forward protocols that ran early Usenet (anyone remember UUCP?). I've been around the block a few times.

I don't take BS from anyone.

Thank you everyone for putting me over the 100 mark! Please feel free to copy this image and support my candidacy on behalf of LJ Artists!

http://www.Cambler2008.com



( That, and I have a hell of a sense of humor. )

Oh, and Esther Dyson knows me personally. Just ask. I'm not sure if that's a point in my favor or against me, though.

My name is vichan, and I am running for the LiveJournal Advisory Board.

( Have you already decided who you're voting for? Read this first. )
Do you want true user representation on the board? Do you want someone who will make sure all voices, great and small, will be heard? Do you want clear communication? Vote vichan.

And now a video message from Jelly Doughnut;



If nominated I'll be more than happy to have an "open forum" on Skype (for those of you who have it) to answer any question or take any comment! Until then I am more than happy to answer any question about any issue in my LJ!

VOTE DOUGHNUT!

Who Am I? Name's daniidebrabant, who's wanted to change her LJ name since, oh, forever. Damn thing keeps sticking. That said, I've been here since Sept 2001, having started my LJ right along with my college experience and I've been here ever since through three and a half moves as well as quite a few other changes. You've probably never heard of me, but that's all right. At least, I think it's all right.

LJ and me? I live on this site. While I keep track of RL friends as much as the next person, I've also MET friends through this service and through these comms on the site. In fact, considering that my first 'roommate' was someone I met through an RP game on LJ, and that person got me out of a living situation I was very unhappy with, I can honestly say that LJ changed my life. Aside from her, I've made other friends through this service, people I've gone to see in person more than once, people I talk to the phone with, people I play and write and make art with: LJ is incredibly important to me and I want to be a positive part of shaping the LJ experience in the time to come, especially as I know that it might be difficult.

Why Do I Want to Do This? Because this site has done so much for me, because the membership of this site is so important to me, and because I hate sitting back and saying 'I don't like this' without doing something about it when I have the chance. Also because I think that I will contribute something valuable to the Advisory Board.

Something Valuable? My day job is working as a Member Services Representative at another social networking site. Suffice to say that that membership is sizeable, though the site itself isn't well known within most of LJ's markets main markets. The point of mentioning that, though, is that I have experience in shaping user experience from the company's point of view. I have sat through many many meetings dealing with monetization, cost issues, advertising vs. user experience discussions, 'what the members REALLY want' discussions; I've observed this process. Not only do I find the whole thing fascinating, but it's part of my job in the long run to translate what is most certainly not Earth Logic into something I can tell members while still providing good customer service. I've helped to be the voice of the membership in meetings before, told them what they're doing wrong so it can be fixed; on the other hand, I've also been the voice of the company to the membership. As a matter of fact, I've actually brought some of the LJ kerfuffles up at work and we discuss them strategically, look at what WE can do better by looking at what they've done.

Like I said above, I am first and foremost a member of THIS site, but I know some of what goes on behind the scenes in a company like LJ. And I think that this will be valuable both to LJ and to the membership. There's no better way to talk to someone than in their own language, and that goes for both sides.

That's nice, but is that it? Nope. I'm logical, practical, hard-working, passionate (especially about LJ), and generally pretty darn friendly. I'm a member of fandom and non-fandom comms, run some fandom and non-fandom comms, role play, write (original and fanfiction), icon, do CG and traditional media art, and keep up with my personal journal pretty regularly. I'm available nearly all of the time through LJ or IM or email, I like to think I'm approachable, and as I'm a people pleaser, born and bred, I will do my very best to be there for comments, questions, or anything else. Also, re: some of the stuff mentioned above, I have a very thick skin and an even temper when it comes to this kind of thing, so I'm not afraid of any of the flack that might come my way from any direction (or any of the terrifying things one might find on the internet!) nor will I lose my cool when things get rough.

You done yammering? Uh, I'm a New York-born, New Jersey-living Capricorn in her mid twenties who loves tea, sushi, knitting, Early modern drama, and a host of other things. I have no pets, but I live with a dog and three cats, as well as their owner.

ETA: THANK YOU EVERYONE who supported me, those I know and those I don't. I am floored and overjoyed to have gotten these nomination supports. That said, for those that did and those that didn't(^_^), here is where you can ask me questions, express concerns, etc. etc. etc.

I'd like to nominate myself for election to the LiveJournal Advisory Board.

I've been a member of LiveJournal for eight years now (today is actually my LJ anniversary!), and was one of the first 3,000 users, so I've pretty much seen it all.

I'm a Permanent Account holder, and may have been the very first person to advertise on LJ, in a brief experiment that brad ran about seven years ago.

I live in Chicago, so the concepts of "Vote Early, Vote Often" and "the big envelope stuffed full of small bills" are second nature (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) ... you may not like the ethics, but remember, this is the City That Works!

I would like to nominate myself as a candidate for the upcoming election.

I've been a Livejournal user for just over four years now, and I already have a distinct understanding of Livejournal culture. I'm also pretty well-versed in Livejournal's Terms of Service, policies and additional features, and I feel that I can contribute effectively to the Advisory Board, especially in regards to LJ's relations to its customers.

I show no particular bias to any one side of the fandom/SUP issue.

I would like to nominate myself Livejournal Advisory Board.

I have had a Livejournal since 2003, but that fact alone is not why I should be on the Advisory Board. I have experience of at one time or another, being on the board of six different organizations. I know the ins and outs of being a board member. I know that as a board member you represent many people, not just yourself. Being a board member is representing ALL the members. I am open minded and I think "globally" not just my point of view. For this reason I feel I would be and excellent representative and an asset to the Livejournal Advisory Board.

I am withdrawing from this election. Thank you for your support and please read my full statement.

~I must be completely out of my bloody mind, but here I am nominating myself for this board.

What are my qualifications?

1)I certainly have plenty of time to address the various issues.

2)I have been a LJer for over six and half years. [LJ #353619]

3)Volume seems to be a criteria and I have 11,155 posts, have made 29,633 comments, and received 21,667 in return. I have 298 mutual friends and am a member of 112 communities, a half dozen of which I moderate.

4)I have fought with management over various issues like the Strikethrough and The Interests Censorship.

5)I am infamous throughout Live Journal. As amokk once said; "When nebris is a voice of reason, then all hope is lost."


The truth is, I probably don't have a snowball's chance in hell of winning, but there has to someone from the Loyal Opposition on this slate and it seems fate has cast that lot to me.

My name is Angela and I have been an active member of LiveJournal since March 16, 2003.

I believe that I could be the voice of LiveJournal users as a member of the Advisory Board.

I have been active in multiple interest groups and communities here at LiveJournal and I have shared and discussed with many members their ideas and opinions regarding goings-on at LiveJournal.

I have been the head of several LiveJournal communities where I did my best to please as many of my communities members as possible with the choices I made. I've worked with other users to run larger fan-based communities and I feel I worked very well both as a single leader and as a team member.

There is such a large age gap of members here that I think it is very important to take everyone's perspectives into consideration and aim to please as many of LiveJournal's customer-base as possible.

While we can't expect LiveJournal to make every single person happy all of the time, I would like it to be my job to find out how we can please more and more of the users here at LiveJournal than are currently content.

Therefore, I nominate myself as the next Advisory Board Member of LiveJournal. I'd appreciate your support! Please consider me as YOUR voice.

Apparently the people modding this prefer the plane jane nomination posts so here goes.

*I've been on lj since early 2001. Not early enough to be an early adopter but close. I've seen lj highs and lj lows and don't plan on leaving for any other service any time soon.

*My local pastor doesn't curse out white people or black people regularly. But in the interest of full disclosure I will note he has a thing against bunnies.

*Journal entries: 5,684 Comments: Posted: 56,357 - Received: 26,036. Are these good numbers? I'm not sure but other people mentioned theirs so I thought I should too.

*I currently mod a few popular communities and seemed to be a popular poster in more than a few. Rarely a week goes by when I don't get a marriage proposal or a "I <3 U

*When visiting the Iraqi war zone I felt the pressure of the soldiers under fire when one of my pre election speeches was held up as we were under sniper fire. I kept my cool in that situation and will do so here.

*I'm old enough to see the pragmatic and young enough to spell prigmatic wrong and not care because we have the right to spell pragmawtic any way we want. FREEDOM OF SPEECH PEOPLE. Having said that the breastfeeding mother icon scandal ... lj was right out the window on.

Nominate mrflagg for a step in a funner direction.

Hi I'm Kate and here is why I think you should nominate me for the LJ advisory board:)

I've been an active member for over 7 years. I have a permanent account and have been an active member since 2000, when I first started university. I've strengthened many of my friendships through Livejournal and even made some new ones (I met my partner partially because of LJ!) I have also started a few popular communities, such as two student communities utoronto and queens. I also understand the internet and internet culture - I've been online since 1995, when I was 14.

I have a deep understanding of LJ. As well as my own personal experiences on the site, I have been researching LJ and social media since 2003 and have published two papers specifically on LJ, one on the meanings of LJ friendship (which was published in a book) and the other about finding information through friends and communities on LJ.

I love LiveJournal and understand how special it is. I appreciate that Livejournal is special and different from other sites like Facebook which from the start have always put money before users. LJ started out as a community project which put users first, with a social contract to boot- a very unique thing indeed! Livejournal has offered a place for communities and groups that were not welcome in other online spaces and has, up until last year's incident, been very progressive about its censorship policies. LJ provides a very valuable service in this age of commercial networking where our privacy, freedom of speech and intellectual property are being put at risk for profit. This is something we need to nurture and protect. And in some cases, I think there are areas where LJ needs to return to its roots. (The challenge to privacy and IP is also part of the focus of my PhD research on Facebook, which I have been blogging about. Please go here to read more.)

I know how community works and what it needs to thrive. I've worked for a number community-focused non profits, both online and offline. Including a housing co-operative for students, by students, where I also sat on the board of Directors, and a youth-focused social network for change called TakingITGlobal.org. I love working with people, solving problems and overall, making people happy.

If you want to nominate me, please reply to this entry with "I support this nomination"

PS Jay Maynard aka Tron Guy rules! Vote for him too!:)

Hi my name is Shane, and I'm running for this election.

1) I'm online everyday, for several hours each day. I have the time and patience to address issues that need addressing. I'm dedicated to being on a comitee and won't let issues that need addressing go unaddressed.
2) I've been a resident of LJ since 2004, but I've had this account this 2007.
3) I moderate 4 communities, and belong to 86.
4) I have 77 friends.
5) I'm pretty well known throughout LJ. If you're a member of a community, you'll most likely see me there.

I hereby would like to nominate myself for the LJ Advisory Board.

I have been a member of LJ since 2000-06-17 (nearly 8 years!) and have been involved with many of the aspects of Live Journal.

Through beta testing, creating and moderating the ever-so-popular toronto community since 2000-12-30, organising the first ever LJ party in Toronto (and the many others following the first) and having a hand in the infamous L.A. LJ Party in Redondo, California in 2002 as well as Camp-LJ in the Sequoia Mountains in California (2003).

I am proud to be an Early Adopter with 6,356 journal entries and 45,580 comments received.

Thanks in advance if you support this nomination!

Hello everyone!

My name is randomposting . I have been a member of Livejournal under this account since 2004 and since then I have introduced my own brand of randomness to the LJ community. :)

With 862 mutual LJ friends, I am very active in this community. I often comment on new journals to spread some positive energy and encouragement. I believe that much of the friendly vibe that used to be here, is now missing. I look forward to bringing it back.

I feel that Livejournal does not always listen to their userbase, and that this election process is vital in creating open communication between the owners, and workers of LJ, and those users who call it home.

I have a very positive attitude, and listen well. I am organized, and think outside of the box. I feel passionately about this community and I have offered both support and criticism for problems that have developed on this site.

I know that I can accept the responsibility of being elected to the advisory board, and will listen to everyone that comes to me with their suggestions and concerns.

I post daily, and I am always available for support or advice when needed. I promise to bring the same enthusiasm and postive energy to this advisory post as I have and will continue to do with my own Livejournal.

I look forward to being your voice on the election board.

Thank you,
Randomposting

Hi there.

Who am I?: My name is Jennifer, and I'll tell you a thing or twelve about my time on LiveJournal.

Personal: I've been an active user of LiveJournal since 2002. I've participated in and maintained communities. I've been an active poster and commenter, and have made lasting friendships with folks on my Friends List. LiveJournal is my online 'home', and as one of its users first and foremost, I feel qualified to speak out as a user on issues that are important not only to me, but to all of you.

Support Volunteer: I've been a Support Volunteer for LiveJournal since 2003, and now serve as a Volunteer Category Administrator for the Entries category. I started out small, leaving answers and not getting approved a whole lot. I quickly received training, and this training enabled me to grow in leaps and bounds, and eventually serve as a category admin. As an admin, I help train other users and -- along with my lovely co-admins -- keep our corner of Support running smoothly.

Now, when something is broken on LiveJournal, they naturally tend to flock to us. We, as volunteers, are extremely aware of what is broken, what is being worked on, and how to best get these issues resolved quickly. I understand the frustration, and would be qualified to work with other board members to work on helping users get the technical help they need.

Abuse Prevention Team: Yes... I've also been a member of the Abuse Prevention Team since 2004. This experience has taught me so, so much. Number one being that when someone tells you "Ew, don't click that!" -- and they're on the Abuse Team -- they mean it!

In all seriousness, I feel that this does qualify me to speak about policy. This does qualify me to help other board members understand how (and why) things are done, and how we can come up with changes that balance user freedom with US law.

Fandom: No, no, don't hit the back button! Yes, I'm an active member of fandom. Yes, I read and write stories, and I view fanart. I have been in 'fandom' on LiveJournal as long as I've been a member. I've attended conventions. I've participated in discussions, and festivals, and meta... I've not always enjoyed being attached to my particular fandom, but I wouldn't trade the experience for the world.

How does this qualify me? Well, I'm aware that fandom comprises a large portion of LiveJournal. We're loud, we waffle between wanting to be understood and wanting to hide out in a cave and hope that nobody comes looking. I understand that, I get it. I'd do whatever I could to ensure that other board members understood that as well.


In summary, I'd love the chance to serve as an Advisory Board Member. I feel that I am qualified to do so. If you have any questions for me, of course, you are welcome to ask here: (http://legomymalfoy.livejournal.com/583709.html).

Thank you for your support.

(image by mistressxenobia!)

I am nominating myself and would like to run for the Advisory Board election. Please show your fealty by commenting with "I support this nomination" on this post.

Thank you,

jameth

I've been an active LJ user since June 2004 - and I love it here. Starting my blog has turned out to be a huge amount of fun that has made me friends all over the world, and allowed for a wonderful exchange of ideas (and sometimes arguments).

LJ has had problems over the last few years, yes - but these problems can be solved, and the site can flourish, given the right direction. I feel that many problems have come about because sometimes LJ doesn't understand what its users want, and at times LJ's users have failed to understand the needs of LJ as a business.

LJ needs to protect its interests, but users want freedom to express themselves. As someone who has often needed to negotiate tactfully in my work, I am good at understanding the issues facing groups with different needs, and I am good at coming to "win-win" solutions. This is what LJ needs - good communication between users, owners, advertisers and other stakeholders. The terms of use need to be clear and fair, and users need to understand their responsibilities.

I come with no axe to grind, and no grudges - just a desire to see LJ be as free and flexible as possible, to see the site prosper, and to be one of the most respected blogging sites in the world. I've invested a lot in my LJ, and I want the best possible experience for everyone.

Vote for me. :) You know it makes sense! I'm ready and willing to listen to your concerns, and do my best to represent your interests.

Unlike some other candidates, I do not consider fandom to have some greater stake in LJ than anyone else, and will seek to represent everyone equally.

EDIT: Thanks to all my supporters for getting me through to the election! For more of my thoughts on the election, the job, the board etc., you can read all my related posts here. Feel free to drop by, ask questions, raise issues, debate, whatever you like. Thanks!

Hi, I'm Elizabeth, and I'm nominating myself.

I am a webcomic writer, photographer, and writer, as well as a government intern (not in that way!) I'm a recent graduate of Rutgers University with a 3.82 GPA and an active writer for the campus newspaper, the Rutgers Gleaner.

I've been involved in LJ since 2001, and have had a paid account for most of my time online.

Prior to my involvement in LJ, I had my own online journal (one of the first) from 1997-2001 called bitterfame.com

I'm an active LJ member and even run the community for my and my husband's webcomic, http://www.raincannon.com/ on LiveJournal. I'm an active member of brits_americans, comix_grrls, and hip_domestics communities!

So, hi!

I intend to be an Advisory Board Member who has two platforms based on libertarian philosophy

1. Non-interference

2. Sensible Copyright Enforcement.


Non-Interference
I want you to be able to have icons of your child eating, whether that's from a bottle or a breast, and I will fight for your right to do so.

I want you to be able to post all the Harry/Snape, Harry/Draco, or Giles/Spike slash fic you want. I want you to be able to post your fan fiction and your original creations, your true stories and memoirs, without fear of being shut down. And, when someone finds what you write offensive, I want there to be a sensible, utilitarian and libertarian policy toward our treatment of members, the kind of policy John Stewart Mill would be proud of.

Do no harm and do not interfere unless you do harm to others.

Sensible Copyright Enforcement
As a webcomic writer myself, I want to see an artist's rights protected as fully as possible. As the wife of someone who does a comic based on parody of another comic, (that would be shadowofsummer's Fred Basset parody), I want to know that works that parody or are created for social commentary are protected. I want to see more Creative Commons less copyright. I want to never again see in LiveJournal what happened to kumimonster and I will fight to make sure it never does! There should NEVER be a policy of ban first and ask questions later.

I want to be on the advisory panel for LJ.  I believe these superior qualities make me superiorally superior to you - 

I am 32 years of age, a full 18 years older than the average LJ'er.
I have been on LJ since 2003, and before that was nimh.net's Moveable Type.
In that time, I have made over 1,500 posts, while keeping my OMGWTFBBQSRSLY??? ratio to actual journaling far below national average.  
I as of yet do not have a ED entry, and have not been featured on stupid_free
I have never made a meme.
My journal is not so hideously blinding that one may have a seizure while trying to read it. 
I understand and respect the tules of proper punctuation and capitalization.
I bless my computer every morning with chicken blood and jumper cables, that the gods may impart sancitity from flame-weilding trolls.
I rule with an iron fist.  None will escape my tyranny.
My leadership is driven to be like my idols:  Vlad the Impaler and Donald Trump.
I wear a garland of severed thumbs and capslock keys around my neck as trophies.

Those who support me will garner my favor.  Those who do not will FEAR MY ALMIGHTY WRATH.

I am shove_this_job . 

 

Hey folks! I am maidenus, formerly known as maidenofspain.

I have been part of LJ since 2003, when I was still just a kid! I'm a huge technological geek, and love all forms of geekery... I began as a basic account, but as I was a poor kid at the time without the money to buy a rename token, I created this new journal.

I have been hugely involved in LJ for as long as I have been interested in technology (which is quite a while.... I am now going to be attending college in order to be a Computer Science and Engineering major, much thanks to LJ).

Soon after becoming heavily involved in LJ, I began to volunteer in LiveJournal's Support area. I not only found my passion there, but found all sorts of new things to fall in love with about LiveJournal.

However, I strongly believe in the userbase. I feel that it is important that the USERS choose what happens to the website, and that a good line of communication between the developers and the users should be maintained. I don't believe in making changes to a website like this without the consent and voice of the users - no matter what their account status. LiveJournal is a community, and like any other community, a democratic approach would be the best one in terms of satisfying users. After all, without YOU, the users, there wouldn't BE an LJ, now, would there?

I support fandoms; I believe that a freedom to express oneself is part of the culture of the Blogosphere and LiveJournal. Rooted in this are the fandoms that I find myself browsing; while I haven't yet stapled down and fully joined one, I maintain a mutual respect for this creative expression, as it is one of the driving forces behind LiveJournal. (In addition to LoLcats)


Anyway, enough about me :)

In short: I think some one from the Netherlands can give a different perspective if necessary.

The slightly longer version:
I'm from the Netherlands and I'm a member of LJ since two years or so. I am mainly here to keep track of friends-met-online, but I've been writing about myself and my family regularly. I've been involved in (the Dutch part of) usenet for more than ten years, including some administrative tasks there, and I've been managing the odd mailing list every now and then.

So, for a view from abroad: nominate me!

Sio

In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a blogosphere founded upon four essential human freedoms.

The first is freedom of speech and expression — everywhere on the net.

The second is freedom of every person to perve on celebrities and/or fictional characters in his own way — everywhere on the net.

The third is freedom from pop-up ads — which means economic understandings which will secure to every user a healthy blogging experience — everywhere on the net.

The fourth is freedom from fear — which means a system-wide reduction of ill-conceived and ham-fisted policy announcements to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no user will have reasonable cause to wonder whether they are in violation of standards — everywhere on the net.

That is no vision of a distant millennium. It is a definite basis for a kind of blog-hosting attainable in our own time and generation.

---

Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was "civis Romanus sum." Today, in the electronic age, let the proudest boast be "Ich bin ein LJ-er."

---

One other thing I probably should tell you, because if I don't they'll probably be saying this about me, too. We did get something, a gift, before the election. A man down in California heard me mention the fact that our two youngsters would like to have a goat. And believe it or not, the day before we left on this campaign trip we got a message from UPS in Seattle, saying they had a package for us. We went down to get it. You know what it was? It was a little baby goat, in a crate that he had sent all the way from California, black and white, spotted, and our little girl, the six year old, named it Frank. And you know, the kids, like all kids, love the goat, and I just want to say this, right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we're gonna keep it.

My feet wait there listening, and when
they dislike what happens they begin
to press on the floor. They know when
it is time to walk out on a program. Pretty soon
they are moving, and as the program fades
you can hear the sound of my feet on gravel.

If you have feet with standards, you too
may be reminded - you need not
accept what's given. You gamblers,
pimps, braggarts, oppressive people: -
"Not here," my feet are saying, "no thanks;
let me out of this." And I'm gone.

--by William Stafford

I am nominating myself for LJ Advisory Board because I am deeply concerned about the direction LJ has been headed, in terms of honoring users' right to express themselves. Yes, this community is privately owned and therefore LJ can do whatever they want, but how this community moves will determine whether I want to be a part of it in the future. But I figure, if you care about something, you should try and be a part of the change you want to see, rather than just sitting back and complaining.

Hello!

My name is Q and I'd like to nominate myself for the Livejournal Advisory Board.
I'm 25 and live in Switzerland - please excuse any English mistakes, this is not my native language!

I've been on LJ since 2002 and it's one of the very few sites that I stayed registered with for such a long time. (And I've had access to the internet for 15 year by now.) Naturally this means the site and my journal means a lot to me but since brad left, something things changed for the worse, some people left and services were changed in a way that a lot of users are not happy anymore. I'm certainly not happy with some of the things either so I'd like to step up and help change things or at least make sure that future changes are in the interstes of us users and not the bank accounts of a few unknown individuals! (Or as recent events have shown, that we're not lied to because somebody thinks we couldn't understand the truth. I don't know how I could influence that though.)

A little bit about me:
LJ can adapt to your life just the way your life changes ever so often. Over the past few years I've been using LJ in many ways and always found a way to reflect me and my life trough it all. This being said I'm part of many fandoms and have created some successful communities in that regard when I have fallen for something new.
But fandom is not all I care about, I'm just as interested in what's going on with LJ itself. So I also help out with some LJ oriented communities and have created a community for LJ's scrapBook since LJ closed the 'official' community.
As you can guess, I'm using my scrapBook and I love it! I love photography and getting free storage space with my perm account = brilliant! But fandom and photography is not all that my life is made of but I always find a way to incorporate new things into my journal or into the way I use LJ and I think it's just that which makes LJ such a great place!

Why I think I would make a good member:
Running a community with a lot of members is hard work. I've been doing that for about 3 years now and the most important part of making this right is always having an open discussion first with your co-mods to see what they think and once you have reached a decision you see how the community feels about it.
Now my community with 5000 members is of course just a small dot in the world of LJ but it gives a good taste on what things might be like. I also understand that sometimes it might be impractical to run every decision by the community but I guess that's what the Advisory Boars is for now, right? (HA! LJ totally stole that idea from me when I suggested we get 'advising moderators' for one of my comms! :-p)

With all this being said, I will always fight for what I think is the right thing to do for the users, not for the money makers. And being a fandom-person, you can also be sure that you have my understanding as well!

Thank you!

qfemale

P.S. Now comes the grueling decision of which icon to use!

---

Being past 100 votes now, I wanted to thank everyone who commented! (There are some muffins over at my journal for all of you :-p)

I don't have a fancy speech. :)

I am nominating myself, ladybast. I have been using livejournal for nearly eight years. My start date was July 3, 2000. I am an active user of livejournal and regularly log on to check my friends page where I have roughly 90 friends and about 70 communities of varying interests. I have been a (co)moderator of several communities, some of them successful, others very podunk and miniscule.

I think LJ as a business and blogging site is pretty fierce but could use some tweaking and needs to reach out to the user base to understand what is and isn't acceptable by user standards and I hope to work with the advisory board to see results that reflect the desires of the average user.

I would appreciate your support.

Thanks!
ladybast
\o/

Dear LiveJournal,

This is my official self-nomination for the Advisory Board. I am an active member in essential communities such as stupid_free, sf_drama, ohnotheydidnt and neopian_adults. I will represent you well, as I have wide and varied interests.

Please respond to this post with "I support this nomination". Thank you.




Leo-Bear approves of this message.

Why elect me? Simple: I believe in leaving LJ alone and letting people post as they will, so long as it's legal. Ban stalker creeps and let the rest alone. I've been on El-Jay since 2003, and have yet to engage in useless flame wars.

I am also known for overusing the "Nuke the site from orbit" quote from _Alien_.

If elected, I promise not to do anything but get in the way of further restrictions.

Vote Irony!

Vote for an Anarchist!