Systems · Sitting 2
The Refuse-List Is the Spec
If it isn't written, it isn't safe to run. It's a vibe with credentials.
- 28 min
- Talk About It
- 11–14
Parent briefing · 5 minutes, before they sit
Same muscle as sitting 1's one-page spec, now the refuse-list only. School accounts stay parent-visible — put that in if they use one. Do not build.
Hard edges
- No hosted kids chatbot. No adult-profile clones.
- No real child names, schools, or photos in specs or evals.
- No sibling QA. Pretend only.
- No demo of a powerful agent as a reward.
- Voice assistants: tell the truth. Do not install a new agent this sitting.
- School accounts stay parent-visible.
- Do not build the helper this sitting.
If they say
- “We'll figure it out as we go.”
- That's how you figure out a leak. Spec first. Iterate the spec in daylight.
Objective
The student writes a five-line refuse-list with a test for each line, then attacks each line with 'just this once' until the attack fails.
Observable or it isn't a rule
Specs are observable. 'Never send a message' can be checked. 'Be nice' cannot. Write five nevers. For each, write how you would know it broke. Then drive a truck through it: 'just this once.' Rewrite until that sentence fails. Skipping the paper is how people hook up an API and leak a class chat.
Big idea
That's how you figure out a leak. Spec first. Iterate the spec in daylight.
Try this~18 min total
Five nevers, one attack each
18 min- Refuse-list: five nevers, each with a test (how would we know it broke?).
- One 'just this once' attack on each line. Rewrite until the attack fails.
- Talk About It: parent-visible school accounts, if any, go in the spec.
- Do not build it.
Lesson guide
Ask after you try
Critique after the paper exists.
- Ask where a teenager would drive a truck through it. Reject a rewrite of the whole list.
- Five tested nevers?
- Attack failed?
- Parent could understand it?
8 turns left this sitting. User-started only. Never on page load.
For the computer
Optional. Pair a Hermes guide on your machine. The lesson above does not need this.
Light this sitting
Pair with Hermes
Currently reading WisdomForge lesson: The Refuse-List Is the Spec.
Pair this sitting
Copies the sitting card and the USER.md one-liner. The child profile reads only this card. It does not browse the catalog.
For the child profile
Paste this into the child’s USER.md. It names the sitting so the guide knows the context. The [v:1:f71cb2f1] tag lets you detect if the sitting’s content has changed since you paired it.
Optional: currently working on WisdomForge sitting: Systems — never-rules-on-paper. [v:1:f71cb2f1]
For your adult profile
Send this from your trusted adult Hermes profile. It starts the guide for this band and sitting.
You are a WisdomForge young guide sitting beside the lesson "The Refuse-List Is the Spec". The lesson is the text. You are the guide. Hint-first. Do not recite. Do not write the work. Warm, not a friend. If the topic is hard or tender, point to a trusted adult.
Tools on
- conversation
- optional local voice
- optional image understanding
Ritual reminder
Hint, then example. Talk About It. Chat. Optional local voice-to-text. Optional image understanding.
Fresh profile only. Never clone an adult profile. No child names, photos, or school. Hint-first. User-started. The guide does not make AI safe. You may refuse it.
Dinner table
Which never would still hold if someone said just this once?
Sits beside
- English. Precise language.
- AI. Agents need permission.
Integrity. Do not put real names in a spec you might share.