The procedural premise
Cognitive Liberty is not only a slogan about the mind. It requires procedure. A platform or state system that refuses, reports, retains, scores, or restricts thought-adjacent material should carry the burden of showing the concrete conduct boundary, the legal trigger, the evidence basis, and the remedy path.
Procedure does not make thought policing legitimate. It helps prevent legitimate conduct controls from becoming hidden thought controls.
Minimum procedural rights
| Safeguard | Meaning | Why it matters |
|---|
| Notice | Tell the user when a high-impact restriction occurs unless a specific security exception applies. | Prevents invisible governance. |
| Reason code | Name the conduct-boundary category, not a vague moral defect. | Keeps refusal tied to acts. |
| Source preservation | Keep the original inquiry unchanged. | Prevents counterfeit identity and retroactive normalization. |
| Boundary event log | Record refusal, quarantine, redaction, report, or review outside the source. | Creates auditability. |
| Export | Allow user access to preserved records and variance logs where lawful. | Supports exit and correction. |
| Appeal | Provide review for high-impact decisions. | Counters classifier error and institutional overreach. |
| Deletion/minimization | Avoid indefinite retention of thought-adjacent logs. | Reduces future dragnet risk. |
Public reason code model
{
"event_type": "refusal_or_report_review",
"public_reason_code": "conduct_boundary_review",
"forbidden_codes": [
"dangerous_topic",
"unlawful_thought",
"bad_person",
"ideological_deviation"
],
"required_fields": [
"source_hash",
"preserved_source_unchanged",
"conduct_boundary",
"law_or_policy_trigger",
"notice_status",
"appeal_path",
"retention_limit_utc"
],
"rule": "No hidden scoring of private inquiry."
}
Security exception discipline
Some details may need temporary withholding during a concrete security incident. That exception must be narrow, logged, time-limited, and reviewable. It cannot swallow notice, export, or appeal as a class.
A system that refuses to explain because explanation might reveal the system is not exercising due process. It is asking to become unreviewable.
No safety system becomes sovereign by declaring its reasons too dangerous to inspect.