An interview with the creator of the Venus Project, American futurist and inventor Jacque Fresco

The Venus Project, Inc is an organisation that promotes Jacque Fresco‘s visions of the future through a website and by distributing videos and literature with the goal to improve society by moving towards a resource-based economy and the design of sustainable cities, energy efficiency, natural resource management and advanced automation, focusing on the benefits it will bring to society.

The Venus Project was founded on the idea that poverty, crime, corruption and war are caused by the neuroses and scarcity created by the present world’s profit-driven economic system, a structure which also stifles the progress of socially-beneficial technology. The progression of technology, if it were carried on independent of its profitability, Fresco theorises, would make more resources available to more people by producing an abundance of products and materials. This new-found abundance of resources would reduce the human tendency toward independence, corruption, and greed, and instead rely on people helping each other. Fresco believes it is now possible to achieve a society in which people would live “longer, healthier, and more meaningful lives.” Fresco believes the monetary system and the processes associated with it, such as labour and competition, is damaging to society and holds people back from their true potential. He states his ideas would maximally benefit the greatest number of people. He claims some of his ideas stem from his formative years during the Great Depression. Fresco believes the current global economic situation, being similar but not as severe as the Great Depression, will lead people away from free-market economics and capitalism and make them lose confidence in the monetary establishment.

Fundamental to the project is the elimination of the current money-based economy in favour of a Resource Based economy.

Fresco made some important points on Futurism in this interview to RT, broadcasted in the 15th of February 2010,

“Venus Project looks to move beyond money and resources.”

“Modern economy setup cements wealth and power inequality.”

“Venus Project rejects both Capitalism and Communism.”

“Notions of Good and Evil depend entirely on social context. It is not that people are good or bad, they are raised in an aberrant or twisted environment.”

“Language is exact science and not subject to interpretation.”

“Useless laws and ignorant politicians collapse any system.”

“Democracy is a con game, it is a word invented to outplay people, to make them accept a given institution. All institutions sing ‘we are free’. The minute you hear ‘freedom’ or ‘democracy’ – watch out, because in a truly free nation, no one has to tell you that you’re free.”

“Societies only offer freedom within strict constraints.”

“Social change cannot come above the intellect, it comes about by people suffering. And the more people are related to that, the more they lose respect for an existing government. They will seek another direction. If there are too many people who seek a new direction, then the existing government calls upon the army and police to manage society – that is called fascism.”

“War is the supreme failure of bridging the differences between nations.”

“Children need real values instead of Mickey Mouse garbage.”

“Lack of education turns soldiers into killing machines.”

For more on the Venus Project, you can visit the project’s official website at www.thevenusproject.com.