Completely agree. Tainter's definition of society is deeply biased to the one he currently inhabits as being perforce "better" (the title having the word "compl

Completely agree. Tainter's definition of society is deeply biased to the one he currently inhabits as being perforce "better" (the title having the word "complex" in it is a dead giveaway). This is a superstition. I'd argue that a society that is actually better is not necessarily at all a more complex one. It is the one that reacts more favorably to change.