Social Engineering & Alchemy

Down near the base of society design, at the stone-age level we're limited to discussing, it intersects with alchemy/[experimental theology]. As with any designed object, society needs a purpose. To know if it is designed correctly, we need to know what it is being designed to do. 

A normal object is designed to meet some need. However, when designing a society, there's feedback. The purpose of society is itself part of what causes the needs the society must meet. In simplified form you can see this by looking at the socially-constructed values. You can raise someone to value X and if you're not stupid about it, it just kind of works. The society will need to meet the value of X. It would be somewhat easier if the value slots could be left blank, but they can't. 

The problem appears when we realize Gnon prefers some society purposes to others, and nobody has yet studied how to ask Gnon which he prefers. There is almost certainly a single correct purpose, and we have no idea which one it is. Thus, experimental theology is required to determine the correct purpose. 

This is one of the cases where identifying the problem is inherently the solution. The correct purpose of society is a meta-purpose. It is to determine the correct concrete purpose of society.

We don't even know what having a correct purpose should look like.

However, solving the problem is largely a matter of realizing the problem needs to be solved, and then not being lazy. If you check and don't give up, you will find out.

One of the major reasons Christianity cannot be correct is because it cannot question the purpose of society. Although it is technically not impossible to guess correctly on the first try, there is no evidence they guessed correctly and lots of evidence they didn't. This is also true of all other religions you've heard about.

P.S. One of the reasons society sucks is because designing society itself is the very highest-status position. Total full-spectrum dominance. Literally everyone wants to seize the position for ulterior motives, which does not exactly select for good-faith design. It is decidedly probable that designed societies require superhuman levels of humility. 

This is one of the reasons for having a pro-sectarian principle. Anyone without the humility to submit to someone else's design can freely boil off and attempt their own design. The mere fact this is possible reduces the humility required. "I'll just try it for a bit and quit if it doesn't work." Secondarily it supports the experimental theology by allowing faster selection on society purposes.

P.P.S. Remember that society members don't necessarily have to work toward the purpose. However, it's important to tag them as such. It's only important to refuse anyone who actively works against it, and be careful about those who are accidentally net hindrances.