3.2 KiB
The Dave Factor — A Shadow Lens on InfraFabric (Sanitized)
Author: Danny Stocker (ds@infrafabric.io)
Date (UTC): 2025-12-21
Status: OPTIONAL ANNEX (AUDIT CULTURE)
Canonical (static mirror): https://infrafabric.io/static/hosted/IF_DAVE_SHADOW_DOSSIER_SANITIZED.md
Repo source: https://git.infrafabric.io/danny/hosted/src/branch/main/IF_DAVE_SHADOW_DOSSIER_SANITIZED.md
SHA256 (sidecar):
https://infrafabric.io/static/hosted/IF_DAVE_SHADOW_DOSSIER_SANITIZED.md.sha256https://git.infrafabric.io/danny/hosted/raw/branch/main/IF_DAVE_SHADOW_DOSSIER_SANITIZED.md.sha256
“Dave” is a pattern, not a person. This annex is a cultural threat model. It exists to prevent dilution-by-politeness and evidence-theater in safety-critical systems.
1) What this is
The Dave Factor names a predictable failure mode in organizations: systems drift toward plausible deniability because it is individually rational.
In safety work, this shows up as: logs without receipts, consensus without vetoes, metrics without methods, and documentation that is optimized for comfort instead of truth.
This annex is written as a shadow lens: a way to read every IF.* document and ask, “How would a rational actor dilute this into harmless theater?”
2) What this is not
- It is not an accusation about any individual.
- It is not a substitute for a threat model.
- It is not permission to be adversarial to humans.
It is a reminder that incentives beat intentions.
3) The Dave translation (small Rosetta stone)
| Rigorous phrase | Common dilution | What to do in IF.* docs |
|---|---|---|
| “Critical failure” | “Operational headwind” | Keep severity terms; attach evidence bundles |
| “Immediate action required” | “Next sprint item” | Add explicit deadlines + owner + acceptance test |
| “Unverified claim” | “Needs follow-up” | Mark as UNVERIFIED and require a trace ID |
| “Audit trail” | “Observability” | Require external verifier steps and SHA sidecars |
| “Veto / stop-ship” | “Alignment session” | State veto authority and escalation path |
4) How InfraFabric is designed to survive contact with Dave
InfraFabric’s protocols already contain strong countermeasures against this failure mode:
- IF.TTT: turns disputes into verification by producing portable evidence bundles.
- IF.BIAS → IF.GUARD: forces escalation and multi-voice review when risk is high.
- IF.ARMOUR: names epistemic attack surfaces (confabulation, narrative drift) explicitly.
The Dave Factor annex exists to keep these protections from being “optimized away” during adoption.
5) Recommended pattern: one Dave callout per paper
Add a short callout box (max ~6 lines) to each major paper:
The Dave Factor: If this section is paraphrased into softer language, what exactly becomes untestable? What artifact (trace ID / bundle / verifier step) prevents that dilution?
This keeps the satire out of the mainline text while preserving the defensive intent.
6) Where the full satire lives
For workshops and cultural reflection, the full satirical “Dave’s Version” is published separately:
https://infrafabric.io/static/hosted/IF_DAVE_SHADOW_DOSSIER_FULL_SATIRE.md