I could be on my own here, but there seem to be quite a few people in agreement that conferring moderator privileges on DaleM was a mistake. He is rather aggressive -- too aggressive, I'd argue -- in removing content and closing questions, and it appears he lacks sufficient subject-matter expertise to do so competently.
Are we stuck with our moderators until the next election, or can this error be rectified now?
I disagree with Dale M on one subtle point: No. We cannot remove a moderator's privileges. See the Meta post on the moderator warning / removal process. There is a Moderator Action Review Process which is initiated by a moderator, and the Moderator Conduct Review Process, initiated when "the Community Management Team is made aware of an issue". So there is no "we" process, there is a "they" process, where a moderator can eventually be Monicaed by some individuals (random selection from people who are CMs), following a process. There is no "recall" process, as exists at the state level in a number of states (but not at the federal level). The "you" process is as Dale M describes.
To supplement the other answers, which address the headline question, I encourage anyone unhappy or concerned with any moderator's actions to raise the issue directly (and, ideally, specifically) in the Sidebar or here on meta.
From what I have seen and know of every Law.SE mod since the site's inception: we are scrupulously open and objective in subjecting our moderation activity to community scrutiny.
We know we are not perfect – yes, even as moderators ;) – and when our actions are called into question we err on the side of lightening our touch. We consult other moderators. We check our activity against both local and general SE norms.
I think only other mods can see the statistics, but I also want to let the community know that DaleM has picked up a significant proportion of the moderation workload here, and that load would otherwise go unhandled, or at least not handled in what I consider a sufficiently timely fashion. So if you don't like what DaleM is doing as a moderator: I believe it would be far better to raise specific behaviors or examples and give him the ability to fine-tune his work than to ask that he stop working in this capacity at all.
The official Stack Exchange process is here. Specifically, you need to initiate action with the Community Moderator team as detailed here.
Please leave a comment indicating if you have decided to do so and I will recuse myself pending the result. In the meantime, I will continue to moderate but I remain open to specific feedback by comment here. I appreciate that my style is grating to you but I ask you to accept that there is no malice or ill-will involved. Please keep the feedback constructive.
Alternatively, if you decide not to proceed, I would appreciate you letting me know.
Cheers.
