THEZEITGEISTMOVEMENT.doc

- THE ZEITGEIST MOVEMENT -
OBSERVATIONS AND RESPONSES
Activist Orientation Guide
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PREFACE:
The Zeitgeist Movement is the activist arm of The Venus Project, which constitutes the life long work
of industrial designer and social engineer, Jacque Fresco. Jacque currently lives in Venus, Florida,
working closely with his associate, Roxanne Meadows. Now, let it be understood that Mr. Fresco will
be the first to tell you that his perspectives and developments are not entirely his own, but rather
uniquely derived from the evolution of scientific inquiry which has persevered since the dawn of
antiquity. Simply put, what The Venus Project represents and what The Zeitgeist Movement hence
condones, could be summarized as: ‘The application of The Scientific Method for social concern.’
Through the humane application of Science and Technology to social design and decision-making,
we have the means to transform our tribalistic, scarcity driven, corruption filled environment into
something exceedingly more organized, balanced, humane, sustainable and productive. To do so, we
have to understand who we are, where we are, what we have, what we want, and how we are going to
obtain our goals. Given the current state of affairs, many of which will be addressed in the first part
of this book, the reader should find that we not only need to move in another direction…we have to.
The current economic system is falling apart at an accelerating rate, with the prospect of worldwide
unemployment occurring on the largest scale ever seen. Simultaneously, we are courting the “point of
no return” in regard to the destruction of the environment.
Our current methods of social conduct have proven to have no chance in resolving the problems of
environmental destruction, human conflict, poverty, corruption and any other issue that reduces the
possibility of collective human sustainability on our planet. It is time we grow up as a species and
really examine what the true problems and solutions are, as uncomfortable, untraditional and foreign
as they might seem.
This work will first present the current economic problems we face, recognizing root causes,
consequences and inevitabilities, while then presenting solutions derived from an assessment of what
is actually relevant to life and society. Additionally, information will be provided as to how each one
of us can help in this challenge, presenting methods of communication and activism that will
hopefully speed up the process of transformation.
It is very important that those who begin this work pause for a moment and think about the
windows of perspective they have been indoctrinated into. Considering the current vastness of human
values and ideologies, coupled with the identification that grows over time with associations to a
particular train of thought, tradition or notion of reality, it can be difficult and even painful for a
person to revise or remove the cherished understandings which they have considered true for long 3
periods of time. This ‘ego’ association, coupled with the perpetual state of ‘limited knowledge’ each
one of us has, will be the biggest hurdle many will face when reading the information presented here.
It is time to broaden our loyalties and affiliations beyond the narrow confines of the marketplace,
tradition, and the nation-state to encompass the human species as a whole, along with the planetary
environment that supports us all. It is time we view the earth as an indivisible organic whole, a living
entity composed of countless forms of life, all brought together in a single community.
If nature has taught us only one thing, it is that the only constant is change. There is no such thing
as a Utopia. Therefore, in order for us to grow productively as a species, we need to become experts
at “changing our minds” about anything and everything. If you choose to approach this material with
a conscious attempt at being open minded and objective, we feel the ideas expressed here will realign
your vision of the world, yourself, and the future of our human family in a way that is the most
productive, humane and effective. 4
Part 1: Monetary Economics
Chapter 1: Mechanisms & Consequences
- The Need for Cyclical Consumption
- The Abundance of Scarcity
- The Priority of Profit
- The Distortion of Values
- Fiscal Manipulation
Chapter 2: The Final Failure
- Beyond Irresponsibility
- The Ultimate Outsource
Part 2: What is Relevant?
Chapter 3: Natural Law
- The Scientific Method
- Dynamic Equilibrium
Chapter 4: The Means for Social Evolution
- Goals
- Method
- Tools
- Process
Part 3: A Resource-Based Economy
Chapter 5: Social Cybernation
- The Venus Project
- Industry and Labor
- Government
Chapter 6: Cities that think
- Circular City
- Transportation
- Lifestyle
Part 4: Overcoming Mythology
Chapter 7: Nature Vs. Nurture
- Human Behavior
- The Legal System
Chapter 8: Functional Spirituality
- The Religious Ideal
- Talk is Cheap
Part 5: Taking Action
Chapter 9: The Movement
- Bridging the Differences
- Interdisciplinary Teams5
- Part 1: Monetary Economics -
Chapter 1:
Mechanisms & Consequences
Defining our terms:
The term “Economics” is generally defined as ‘the social science that studies the production,
distribution, and consumption of goods and services’
1
.
As of the early 21st century the prevailing mechanism of virtually all economies worldwide is some
form of “Monetary System”. A Monetary System uses an intermediary exchange medium, known as
‘money’, as the means for facilitating employment, production, distribution, and the consumption of
goods and services. The use of this medium of monetary exchange, as a basis for an economic system,
could be termed: “Monetary Economics”.
While virtually no nation on the planet currently uses anything else but Monetary Economic Theory
in its country’s operations, certain variations are indeed present. Generally speaking, these variations
have to do with the degree by which the system is controlled by the government of a country. The
current ‘sliding scale’, moving from more regulation to less regulation, typically starts with
“Communism
¨
”(maximum state control), passes through Socialism (partial state control), and ends
at Capitalism (little to no state control). These variations of economic application could be termed
“Social Systems”.
The prevailing Social System of the world today is Capitalism. Capitalism, which is often placed
under the umbrella of another theoretical concept known as the “Free Market”, is defined as: “an
economic system by which the means of production are owned by private persons, operated for
profit, and where investments, distribution, income, production and pricing of goods and services are
predominantly determined through the operation of a ‘free market’
2
.”
A “Free market” is essentially an unregulated trading orientation where “the prices of goods and
services are arranged completely by the mutual consent of sellers and buyers; hence, the market
forces of supply and demand determine prices and allocate available supplies, without government

1
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
¨
Communism is being referenced here in its historically applied form, not the idealized forms which advocate no money.
2
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism6
intervention”
3
. The notion of “Free market” has many interpretations and schools of thought. For
example, one of the more extreme, yet currently active ideologies is the “Austrian School”, which
condones the notion of “laissez-faire” which basically means having literally no state intervention on
economic issues at all. In this perspective, “welfare” and other state sponsored ‘social’ programs
would be considered inappropriate
¨
.
Now, general terminology aside, a very relevant attribute of Monetary Economics is the “Theory of
Value”. The level of a product or service’s ‘value’ is derived essentially from two factors
ª
:
1)The scarcity (availability) of the materials used.
2)The amount of human labor required to produce a product/service.
For instance:
Imagine the amount of time and effort it would take to create a simple shirt before the advent of
electricity and advanced industrial technology. The overall process might be to: prepare the soil --
plant the cotton seed – oversee the growth period -- pick the cotton -- tease out the seed --- spin the
cotton into thread -- weave it into the cloth -- and shape the cloth into shirt form.
Given the above scenario, simply from a human labor standpoint, the value of that shirt would be
relatively high and likely sold for a price respective of the extensive labor. The cotton seed
(component material) value would be negligible as it is produced as a byproduct of the prior harvest,
making its scarcity value very low. Therefore, the real value of this shirt comes from the labor
involved.
Now, hypothetically speaking, what if this production process required no human labor at all, while
the cotton seed/water/sunlight/soil maintained its natural abundance? What would the value of that
shirt be then? Obviously, it really wouldn’t have a value at all.
As of the start of the 21
st
century, Industrial Machines have taken the role of planting and harvesting

3
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_market
¨
The evolution, application and interpretation of Economics are staggeringly large bodies of material with endless debate. It is
not in the interest of this manual to present a treatise on the whole of Economics. In fact, a partial basis of this manual is to
show how, through the advent of Technology and the elimination of Scarcity, 99% of all economic theory is now an outdated
and irrelevant practice.
ª
There are also even more subjective forms of value that are demographic specific, where certain “brands” create prices
(projected value) not based on tangible human labor or material value, but on the “status identity” of the item itself, as
perceived by the consumer culture. This is a less relevant form of “economic value” and will be discussed more so in the
section entitled: “Distortion of Values” later in the Chapter. Also, financial instrument values, such as issues traded on the
stock market are also irrelevant, in and of themselves, when it comes to actual production and distribution.7
agricultural products to the effect where one lone farmer can now work 1000+ acres of land on
his/her own. The advent of textile equipment, such as the Cotton Gin dramatically reduced human
effort, while with the modern use of industrial computerization, we are seeing a constant gravitation
to the near full automation of the Agricultural and Textile Industries, among many others.
The point is that the position of “Economic Value”, as a seemingly static economic notion, is now
being overhauled by this technological influence (increasing ease of production/material abundance),
which could, theoretically, eliminate the notion of ‘value’ entirely.
When human labor is reduced/displaced by technology and automation, the assumed ‘value’, which is
to equate that ‘labor’ to ‘price’, drops respectively. The ‘value’ of the output would then move to the
creation/maintenance of the machinery, which now serves as the role of laborers. Consequently, the
more efficient, durable and sustainable these worker machines are, the further the ‘Value’ of the
production drops.
The realization is that the pattern of machine automation, coupled with modern innovations that are
finding substitutions for “scarce” resources, could lead us into a position where no good or service
would require a “value” or price tag. It simply wouldn’t make any theoretical sense.
For most, this is a very difficult thing to consider, due to what we are used to experiencing in our
everyday lives. Regardless of your opinion, the fact is, the pattern of constant technological
improvement coupled with automated machinery can theoretically create an economic environment
where the abundance of materials and production mediums are so high and efficient, most humans
will have little need to ‘purchase’ anything, let alone ‘work for a living’, in the traditional sense. More
specifically, even if machines slowly displaced only a large minority of people, expanding
unemployment, the ramifications would be systemic, and the entire economic system would grow
more and more unstable and inoperable. This issue will be expanded upon in Chapters 2 and 5.
That point aside for now, let’s examine some empirical mechanisms that Monetary Economics,
specifically in the context of Capitalism, requires in order to maintain the integrity of the system. In
the remaining sections of this chapter, we will discuss the 5 most foundational attributes needed for
maintaining the system, the reasoning behind them, and their consequences.
Mechanism One
The Need for Cyclical Consumption
The roles of people in a monetary system are basically broken into three distinctions:
The Employee, The Consumer, The Employer (or Owner/Producer)
¨

¨
There is also the Investor who gives fiscal support to an Employer/Owner/Producer, or trades in the Financial markets for
gain. This isn’t relevant to the context for an investor is not required to exist in order for the market system to operate.8
The Employee performs tasks for the Employer in exchange for a “Wage” or monetary payment,
while the employer sells a good or service to the Consumer for a “Profit”- another classification of
monetary payment.
In turn, both the Employer and Employee function as Consumers, for the monetary payments
(“wages” and “profits”) they obtain are used to purchase goods and services relevant to their survival.
The act of purchasing goods and services, which is the role of the Consumer, is what allows the
Employer to make its “Profit”, while also enabling the payment of the Employee’s “Wage”.
In other words, it is the requirement of perpetual ‘Consumption’ that keeps the Employer in business
and maintains the Employee’s job.
Now, it is important to understand that this payment-consumption cycle (or ‘cyclical consumption’)
cannot stop, or the entire economic structure would collapse, for money would not come to the
Employer, the Employer would not be able to afford to pay his Employee, and both the Employer
and Employee would not be able to perpetuate the cycle by being a Consumer.
Consequence:
#1 - Nothing physically produced can ever maintain an operational lifespan longer than what can
be endured in order to maintain econ