Message to the governing class: don’t make dumb promises. For example,

  1. Don’t make promises you can’t keep.

  2. Don’t make promises you haven’t yet figured out how to keep.

  3. Don’t make promises based on speculative theories that haven’t been tested.

  4. Don’t make promises on the assumption it will all work out.

  5. Don’t make promises on the assumption you can backtrack later without serious repercussions.

  6. Don’t make promises that are generous, unconditional, and open-ended.

  7. Don’t make promises that create high expectations that can’t be met.

  8. Don’t make promises that are unconditional moral imperatives.

  9. Don’t make promises without a plan

  10. Don’t make promises without a back-up plan.

Bonus Tip: Don’t make promises that require you to break the law to keep.