I saw the recent Call for Nominations for the election this year, so the title of this post is only slightly rhetorical. I thought I'd post some thoughts here and see if a few of you might serve as a sounding board.

I guess a start is to discuss why I'm considering it:

• I think our profession would benefit from a strong assocation

• I don't think our current association does as much as it could in a number of areas (I've blogged about this)

• Old school enough to believe it's fair to just complain about what's wrong

Then, my list of reasons why I think I would be a reasonable candidate (my first political post?):

• I've got a bit of experience in building online communities

• I've been a DBA, developer, manager, trainer, and now business owner - a nice diverse set of skills

Reasons I think it might not be a good idea:

• I've got an inherent conflict of interest, one in SQLSaturday (PASS is trying to mimic this to a degree) and the other in JumpstartTV, and I'm not planning to give either up this year

• I also don't want to be involved in the SQL Server Standard, the magazine we started years ago and gave to PASS following the sale of SSC

• I'm pretty busy already

• I'm not quiet, passive, or patient when it comes to pursuing change - not bad things, but with them comes the risk of friction or worse

• I'm not sure PASS wants to move beyond being an annual conference. In my view they do the conference well and if that's the main goal, things that would interest me wouldn't be a good fit

Of course a nomination doesn't equate to getting elected. Don't look for many stump speeches here!

So, should I or shouldn't I, and why? Or who would be a better candidate? I've been trying to talk my friend Steve Jones into running, though he has a similar set of issues with the conflict of interest as he works for Red Gate. I think Grant Fritchey would be a great candidate because while he's loyal to PASS, that loyalty hasn't blinded him to areas where it could do better.