GRIN in Action
How to Use GRIN Analysis
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A Practical Guide
GRIN is not just theory. It's a practical tool for evaluating policies, institutions, and movements in real-time. Here's how to apply it.
The Core Questions
For any policy or action, ask:
- G (Generativity): Does this create new capabilities, knowledge, or possibilities? Or does it recycle grievances and destroy existing capacity?
- Ge (Efficiency): How many resources (attention, money, lives, joules) does it consume per unit of output? Is it lean or wasteful?
- R (Resilience): Does this make the system more robust to shocks? Or does it create brittleness and single points of failure?
- Rc (Resistance): Does this block adaptation and novelty? Are purity tests replacing competence?
- F (Fidelity): Is ideology being enforced rigidly? Are dissenting voices being silenced?
Warning Signs
The "evil as parametric state" signature:
- Low G + Low Ge + eroding R + high Rc + high F = extraction mode
- Systems in this state consume their hosts until collapse
- They cannot persist without external subsidy
Healthy Signs
The generative signature:
- High G + reasonable Ge + maintained R + balanced Rc/F = sustainable growth
- Creates more than it consumes
- Can persist and compound over time
The Non-Partisan Lens
GRIN doesn't care about left or right. It asks: What are the measurable outcomes?
A policy that sounds progressive but destroys G and R is bad. A policy that sounds conservative but builds G and R is good. The framework cuts through tribal allegiances to evaluate what actually works.
This is uncomfortable. It means your side can be wrong. It means the other side can sometimes be right. But it's the only way to make progress.