Skeptic Project

No, I promise its really funny.

Mostly because you believe it.

You make no fucking sense at all.

I like how you think the goal of TVP is to progress rather than to just make Fresco and Merola some money.

"Personally I find it hard to believe that its an intentional scam the same way I find it hard to believe that people like Richard Gage don't really believe the towers were demolished."
I think they are both trying to take credit for domething that was no there idea and was going to happen anyways.I dont believe there in it for the money at all but they certainly are desparate to for the woo.The three main goals for cult leaders as I have said before is Glory,Gold and Girls.. in other words fame,money and sex.Matt and anticultist believe there in it for the money I think they are in it because they both revel in it.The fact that they say there the only solution when clearly there are other groups,that they are infallible etc they want fame.Even it is just a few thousand impressionable teenagers and CTr's.Youre dealing with a failed art student who pathologically lies and defends con artists,a failed inventor and his ageing playboy bunny so they want woo and credit since they are failures.Most CTrs are failures that want to be paid attention.

I think Merola is a classic cult leader--narcissistic, self-absorbed, and amazed at the obedience he can command in his followers.

That said, I think he truly believes in conspiracy theories and really believes he's doing the right thing in spreading them. Whether he truly believes in a RBE is anyone's guess, but clearly he has identified it as a vehicle to spread his ideology, whatever it may be and to whatever extent (perhaps a significant one) it overlaps with RBE stuff.

Fresco is just a dodgy old man. He probably really believes in a RBE, but he's also just fine coasting along as he is, and he's probably grateful for the infusion of cash and followers that Merola's conspiracy theorizing has brought him. I also believe Fresco is a conspiracy theorist, though probably not as committed to CTs as Merola is.

Is this an intentional scam? Depends on how you define "intentional."

When I look at more self contained communities, I see very capitalist friendly solutions, I see lots of customers with jobs and spare income able to afford things that at the moment they cannot..

My analysis:

I love how his plan for "doing something" is basically misrepresenting the ZGM to religious people, we all know what he really thinks about religion in the Venus Project society.

And then he wants to get funds from corporations, Im sure they would have donated a lot already if they had proved they created real technology that actually worked over the years. Even if they their investors didnt agree with their Venus Project ideas at least they would see they can get results and wouldnt mind investing. He also says that they should misrepresent the Venus Project to these people as well, saying that they should be told that the Venus Project doesn't want to destroy the free enterprise system. So basically waft over the fact that the Venus Project wouldn't have any need for their company and all wealth would be shared and there'd be no money. Rather disingenuous Jacque.

EDIT:
(Maybe the responce to the above is that if they had designed real working technology it would not be interesting to companies to invest money in because they would make it TOO efficient. As we all know from watching Zeitgeist Addendum, abundance and efficiency is the enemy of profit... UH LOL?)

I also LOVE the contradiction. He specifically says "the richest person today will be considered poor in the Venus Project". And yet people like Peter Joseph says that the most rich people live the way they do because they are "sick", they dont need their mansions, sporty cars or yachts and that in the future people wont want to live that way. Its impossible for every person on earth to live the way rich people do, there arent enough resources available. Oh yes, I forgot about the nano replicators of course that somehow we will be able to invent if the Venus Project happened.... Anyway... Fresco qualifies the statement by saying its because there will be great medical treatment ... Last time I checked rich people dont have a problem getting the best medical treatment available right now because THEY have money. So, fail argument is fail.

He rhetorically asks the question, "do we have the resources to do this?" and answers "we have more than enough". But, resources to DO WHAT? Feed and clothe everyone on earth? I would say yes, we do. But that's not what the Venus Project claims to be able to do, they want to do what I talked about in my previous paragraph. That we will all live better than the wealthiest people currently living. This is what they will always do with this argument, just move goal posts. When you tell them there's not enough resources to do these amazing things they talk about they start saying that we have more than enough to feed and clothe everyone on the planet, when that's nowhere near the extent of what they would have to achieve.

I agree with him to a certain extent about education, what he was saying about how indoctrinating children into religion is negative for their social development and therefore society, I've heard basically the same argument from people like Richard Dawkins. Then there is his other idea of soap opera's and basically describes these the same way as if it were propaganda created by the state. I do wonder what he thinks would happen to the rest of TV, or would it all be shut down and you can only view these educational dramas. Completely impractical, when they talk this way is it any wonder people say its just Communism repackaged?

Then he seems to suggest that this would all be in the research city. Strange, I thought it was meant to be a small version just to showcase potential technological working prototypes not be an actual working city with real people. So then, how many more billions will they require for that? Who the hell is going to donate that kind of money? I'd venture a guess that even Scientology probably wouldn't be able to raise that kind of money.

And then he starts talking the talk of how you should learn from mistakes, but then he has been doing it from for over 50 years and apparently didnt learn anything.

And that's the end of the first video and I cant be bothered to listen anymore right now :)

He wont ever have enough money, so it doesn't matter. I wonder at what point the accounts will mysteriously be very difficult to verify.

Has has enough money to pay his property taxes and energy bills. Not to mention enough money for plane tickets for him and his bunny. That's more than most people with his level of education, which is to say, none.

The nearest I've come to affording to be in a plane, is walking around one in a musuem!

I've never given any money to Fresco, I was always waiting for him to come up with some kind of plan where the money would be used to build something..

I did once give money to Piratebay ($5) some years ago as they said they was going to build a community someplace in the world.. (And they did raise $20k+ from folk on that basis.)

I guess they are still working on that... or did they just run off with everyones money..

If you can't trust PirateBay, who can you trust with your cash :-)

(The answer there is, you don't trust anyone with it, you find someone whose going to pay you instead!)

Now I just need to create some jobs so I can do that..

"If you can't trust PirateBay, who can you trust with your cash :-)"

When I'm looking for places to donate my money to, I often choose torrent sites with child pornography, bestiality and scat. It just makes good sense.

>> As if buying some old sea fort would've been a sensible strategy for secure filesharing anyway.

A sea fort that almost burnt down*

> This can be all made the more easier by not trusting Scandinavians.

You got to admit though, PirateBay was a good product..

And they, like Fresco have bills to pay..

What should have happened is the money raised should have gone to a bunch of folk born from their forums intent on building said community, its a pity that group didn't manage to amount to anything and ended up being destroyed from within. (He says being there at the time and being thrown out..)

Perhaps someone can ask the PirateBay folk if they ever intent to revisit their idea..

> As if buying some old sea fort would've been a sensible strategy for
> secure filesharing anyway.

Well, Sealand last spoke about making use of a Russian satellite to help spread the love around, so it might not have been a bad move.

Satellite launching is still a good direction to head in I reckon. (Skylon anyone..)

> A sea fort that almost burnt down

Which must be quite a challange being made of concrete and being surrounded by water :-)

PirateBays time created as much interest as TZM time, people came together, forums was created, community building efforts was talked about, and then as the forum vanished, people drifted away..

I hear from folk from the 1960's, the same thing happened, a few even made it to live on islands such as Eel Pie in London:

http://www.eelpie.org

I see looking at the history books, how many have tried this route in the past in a small way:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/greenliving-squatters-revolution-in-surbiton-1671326.html</p>

http://www.utopia-britannica.org.uk

It always interests me to try and figure out what went wrong and how we might learn and get it right next time...

I don't consider $5 much faith..

I have more faith in McDoanlds and Pizzahut..

But you've got to encourage someone whose making an effort, any effort to try and improve things, and PirateBay do have a history of making things happen, so I viewed it as a reasonable bet.

Much like I assume that my pizza wont give me food poisoning and might actually taste nice..

Not always the case mind you..

If only there was better places to put ones money to build a better future...

(Thats a Q for, please list them!)

> these Eel Pie people weren't making an effort to do anything but get stoned.

They had the exact same desire to change the world as TZM has, and do the exact same thing..

So, where do you donate/invest your money to then ?