The argument
Copy, Paste, Standardize: How Wack Propagates
Wack Propagation occurs when a local workaround is copied into code, images, runbooks, or platform defaults and becomes organizational architecture without a fresh decision.
The field pattern
A firewall exception is added for one migration. The rule is copied into Terraform. The module becomes the approved starter. Six teams inherit the path without knowing its origin. By the next assessment, “that is the standard” is technically true and operationally meaningless.
Why it matters
Propagation multiplies the cost of one decision. The original risk may have been accepted for a bounded situation; copied instances silently create new populations, owners, and evidence obligations.
Infrastructure as code does not remove Wack. It can preserve good decisions with precision—and preserve unexplained decisions with industrial efficiency.
Questions that expose the Wack
- Which exceptions or legacy rules exist inside reusable templates?
- Does every inherited control still match the consumer’s actual architecture?
- Can template maintainers explain the rationale behind each special case?
- What test prevents local Wack from becoming a platform default?