Rules of Thumb

 I figured I'd write some rules of thumb... guidelines for what to prioritize when deciding how to get from where we are to where we want to be.

These aren't in any particular order, but I'll start with the one I talked about earlier:

• Make decisions at the lowest level possible
• Lower levels should have the freedom to add on to, but not take away from policies and decisions made at higher levels

In addition, I'll add the following:

• Any policy that you don't want applying to yourselves is a bad idea (or needs refinement)
• Think of this as a specific version of the Golden Rule. If you think that more people should give up on higher education and focus on trade schools, consider whether you are truly okay with letting your children - or yourself- do so. If you want other people to go to a trade school, but you would be upset if your child gave up on a college degree in order to become a plumber, then maybe that says something. Maybe you're really just trying to stop other people from competing, or you want other people to do the jobs you think are beneath you. 
• It could just need refining, in that if you aren't willing to see you or your loved ones doing whatever... that means you're missing something critical about what you're proposing
• Seriously - if you wouldn't want to live under that policy, then you shouldn't try making others do so
• This applies doubly so for the fools who seem to think a great die off is a good idea. Like Prince Philip here. Fools like this always seem happy to hear about other people dying, but we all know that they don't want their own loved ones to die of disease. Or if they're truly okay with it, then you have to wonder about whether they truly loved anyone in the first place. Enough with these fantasies of making something good out of mass suffering, it's sickening.
• Empower people wherever you can
• A good parent helps their child grow into adults capable of making their own decisions. Your focus should be on helping people make their own choices, hopefully wise choices, rather than trying to impose yours on them
• Yes, sometimes that means they will make choices you disagree with. Either work on persuading people, or look at the incentives and motivations that prevent people from making better decisions. If that doesn't work, consider whether you're wrong. Or are missing something critical. Quit worrying about control, and focus more on leading and building
• A thriving middle class creates stability and prosperity
• This seems pretty self-evident, considering that's one of the things we consider when we assess a nation. Two much wealth disparity tends to mean a country isn't very stable, plus there aren't as many people with the money to buy things... so less prosperous. I'm making a point of it because we've had numerous reports on the hollowing out of the middle class, the growth of wealth inequality, etc... and yet the powers-that-be don't seem to take that seriously. They even support policies that make it worse.
• Nobody wants to die because they bought poisoned food
• This is a dramatic statement to describe a whole category of things. Basically the idea that people unknowingly suffer because unscrupulous businesses sell things that hurt them. If you don't want people solving that with federal regulation, make sure you have an alternative that addresses the root cause. 
• No, expecting unscrupulous businesses to go out of business as the public catches on is not a reasonable alternative. You can consider non-profit rating schemes or other alternatives, but then they will need funding and some method of accurately rating things. Basically it doesn't have to be the government, but whatever your alternative is will probably do similar things, so why duplicate the effort? If your 'de-regulation' leads to more people dying then the root causes for that regulation are just going to keep coming back. Don't expect people to just accept suffering when it's something we can prevent.
• You can't make good policy if you can't accurately assess your environment
• If you've mistaken the root causes, your solutions won't fix anything.
• If you don't assess the results of your policies, you won't know when they need adjusting.
• Everything depends on getting accurate and reliable information. If that information is considered a threat for some reason, then take a long, hard look at yourself. Trying to prevent us from capturing statistics on gun deaths or getting accurate information on climate change doesn't change the underlying truth, it just makes sure all your policy proposals are going to be bad because they're based on faulty information.
• Honestly, quit it.
• Nobody knows everything. 
• Good decision-making involves seeking out different sources of information. If you rely on only one source, then you won't make good policy (see the previous bullet point). Just make sure to evaluate those sources for accuracy and reliability, too.
• People are not robots
• First, that means they react better to stories and anecdotes than 20 page reports full of facts and findings. Keep that in mind when trying to persuate people
• Second, people will not always do what you expect. Be prepared for that.
• Third, this is why counter-intuitive policies sometimes work. It's like how a computer programmer who stops to take a break can come back and suddenly see how to program somethign that was stumping them... productivity is not just a matter of work hours. In fact, trying to force people to grind through some boring and tedious task can make them less productive then letting them have breaks. Learn how to manage people, don't expect them to act like robots.

I'm sure there's plenty more, but that's enough for today.