Warm Glow Theory

Good theories are like good chai — strong, simple, and best shared. Warm Glow Theory qualifies.

What the theory says, finally, is that people are predictable in their unpredictability. That is useful knowledge. It lets you forgive more and be surprised less.

The idea is simple, and like most simple ideas it is easy to nod at and hard to use. The nod is free. The use costs attention, every day, in small change.

Every colony has a notice board and a gossip channel. The notice board informs; the channel decides. Wise residents read the first and audit the second.

Society is a long conversation; the only question is whether you are listening or merely waiting to speak. Carry it lightly. Ideas, like umbrellas, are useful only when actually opened.