Visual Discipline Guide

When, why, and how images may be used

This document defines when, why, and how images may be used on this site. The goal is not decoration or persuasion. The goal is clarity, restraint, and credibility across ideological lines.

Images are treated as structural elements, not content drivers.

Core Principle

If an image makes the reader feel something strongly, it does not belong here.

This site prioritizes:

  • thinking over reacting
  • mechanism over narrative
  • durability over virality

Visual restraint is not aesthetic minimalism—it is a trust signal.

When Images Should Be Used

Yes - when images:

  • clarify abstract mechanisms
  • slow the reader down
  • mark transitions between conceptual sections
  • reinforce seriousness and neutrality

No - avoid images that:

  • dramatize events
  • depict people (especially faces)
  • reference specific political actors or symbols
  • rely on emotion, shock, or sympathy
  • resemble news photography, memes, or campaign art

Approved Image Categories

1. Abstract Institutional Diagrams (Preferred)

Use case: Explaining the framework, showing pressure dynamics, visualizing systems and constraints

Characteristics:

  • Minimalist
  • Flat or lightly layered
  • Neutral geometry
  • No icons tied to ideology
  • No labels baked into the image

These images function like diagrams in an academic paper.

2. Architectural / Structural Metaphors

Use case: Essay header images, long-form transitions

Characteristics:

  • Empty civic or institutional architecture
  • Corridors, barriers, layers, grids
  • Concrete, glass, steel
  • No people

These images subconsciously communicate institutions, impersonality of power, durability, and distance from emotion.

3. Atmospheric / Textural Dividers

Use case: Section breaks, visual pauses

Characteristics:

  • Fog, glass, layers, shadows
  • Soft light
  • Subtle grain
  • Near-monochrome palettes

These images should feel almost invisible.

Explicitly Disallowed Imagery

  • Faces or people
  • Prison imagery
  • Flags, national symbols, uniforms
  • Protest or conflict scenes
  • Photojournalism
  • Screenshots of news or social media
  • Charts designed to persuade
  • Red/blue dominant palettes
  • Anything that could be used as a social media thumbnail

If an image could work as a meme, it does not belong here.

Image Frequency Rules

  • Homepage: 1 image maximum
  • Essay pages: 0-1 header image
  • Framework page: 1-2 diagrams maximum
  • Case studies: Usually none
  • Footer / navigation: Never

White space is the primary visual language.

Color & Tone Constraints

Approved palette:

  • Warm off-white
  • Charcoal
  • Slate gray
  • Muted blue-gray
  • Muted rust (very sparingly)

Avoid:

  • high saturation
  • stark contrast
  • color symbolism

Images should not "pop." They should settle.

Image Review Checklist

Before publishing any image, verify:

  • Does this image explain rather than decorate?
  • Could this be misread as political messaging?
  • Does it introduce emotion where none is needed?
  • Would it still feel appropriate in 5-10 years?
  • Does it make the site feel more serious—not louder?

If unsure, remove the image.

Final Rule

Images on this site exist to support thinking, not to guide feeling.

Restraint is not absence. It is discipline.