Note to Peter Joseph

Peter,

I’m sorry you were hurt and I hope you take the time to recover emotionally.  Also, I know you are constantly pulled in many directions and your exhaustion is apparent.  I urge you to take the time you need: for rest, recreation, and socializing in ease.  You need to laugh again, spend some time in nature, and just live peacefully for awhile.

The Zeitgeist Movement is a resource for people to be disabused of prevailing indoctrination.  It is not about imposing a point of view, instead it’s about letting nature flourish.  The ZM debates a lot about “human nature” and works to provide evidence that we’re not all nasty, exploitative, and competitive by nature.  The main theme is that if we release ourselves from the artificially created (and dehumanizing) economic system, which sets person against person, we will allow our natural inclinations of collaboration and trust to come forward.  The result will be a better society for all of us. 

The harder part for us, is our tendency to think small.  We think of our individual selves, and possibly an extension of that, our families.  Education—and I’m not talking about just the formal kind—help us move beyond those limitations of perspective.  Education can take many forms, from films to one-on-one talks.  The VP believes that a film is the best way to go.  In its purported goal of using science to make decisions, has the VP found this to be a scientifically substantiated “best use” of resources?  To show a society that is free of money in which humans contribute in ways they care about and have talents for is a great vision to present to the public.  And it’s been done before in a "dressed up" fiction.  That work is well-known under the name of Star Trek. 

I understand the other goal of wanting to express one’s creative vision.  This is important, and I believe it is why you, Peter, made your films using funds you could generate.  It has been helpful and meaningful.  Now, if you had 50 billion at your disposal, would you use it for another film (your creative expression) or for something more influential in scope?  If that project was something you didn’t have the talent to direct/organize, would you give the resources to that other effort, knowing that it will help humanity on a larger scale than your presumed project?

I believe the answer is yes, and I’m glad to infer this on your behalf.  The VP has decided otherwise.  The VP has been useful in suggesting technical solutions and challenging entrenched thinking.  For this, it has been and will be appreciated. It's always a great idea to be disabused, since we all undergo so many years of abuse.  The VP wants to represent their organization in a particular way and be the center of their creative projects.  I understand this desire, although I think it lacks a sense of the larger perspective.  Perhaps that will always be a recurring limitation of our minds, and that’s exactly why we need each other to inform us (in an environment of trust) when our perspectives are embolized. Thanks for contributing to that effort!