1. The Wholeness Test
Win / Win / Win for all involved. Does every party—present, absent, and future—receive the greatest achievable good without bearing avoidable burden?
Final decision gate
The Stewardship Standard
The Standard is not a score, ranking, endorsement, or average. It is a fail-closed completion gate for significant decisions, policies, reviews, moderation outcomes, and marketplace rules.
The eight tests
Every test must receive an honest, complete, unqualified Yes.
2. The Harm Test
Causes no damage—to anyone, seen or unseen. Is every avoidable harm removed and every unavoidable burden strictly necessary, proportionate, openly disclosed, and minimized?
3. The Good Test
Does the Greatest Good. Does this pursue the greatest achievable good, honestly measured across all people and all time?
4. The Time Test
Timeless. Not of this moment. Will this stand with equal clarity in 100 years?
5. The Motive Test
Pure in motive. Nothing else is driving this. Is the public good—and only the public good—the engine?
6. The Openness Test
Open to all. Hidden from none. Can the decision, full reasoning, and process be defended openly to any person?
7. The Precedent Test
Sets a precedent we pass forward with pride. Does this make the next right thing easier and the next wrong thing harder?
8. The Dignity Test
Treats every person as a full individual. Does this see every affected person as a full, irreducible individual with dignity and a right to be heard?
The verdict rule
One No or incomplete answer returns the work for correction. No average, vote, rank, urgency, authority, or desired outcome can override a failed test.