Simple things are hard, Complex things are easy

Be annoyed when an idea, concept or service is not broken down to a few simple statements.

Frustratingly bad

The Democratic Alliance recently produced an 82 page manifesto which I find hugely disappointing as a potential voter of such a party. As the Renegade reports's Roman Cabanac noted, that's twice as long as the Marxist communist manifesto.

Better examples

What are good examples of texts where an organisation is setting out to achieve something? I personally point to:

• MIT license short, sweet and understandable unlike the GPL
• The US constitution and Bill of Rights is dated, but fairly accessible and short. Unlike the maddening South African constitution
• The Bible's 10 commandments
• The product of the French revolution
• Joel's seminal 12 Steps to Better Code

The problem is a failure to distill an idea in a clear manner

It's easy to write reams of garbage, but it's difficult to be on point.

The legal profession, government regulatory or insurance environments often breed shit storms in the shape of terms of service. This must be stopped and I commend efforts like Terms of Service; Didn't Read.

Complexity that requires interpretation disadvantages the consumer. I would go so far as to say this practice is designed to strip away power from the average consumer as the language and complexity forms a barrier to entry.

Complexity disenfranchises the consumer.

If everything was simple

I believe we all would be in a better position if documents were short and sweet.

Nonetheless I am not naive enough to know that even short texts can be manipulated like what happens in the Animal Farm.

However unlike a long impenetrable text, it's clear(er) to see.

Reject complexity!