Jim Jesus wraps up 2011

Zeitgeist Movement: 2011 Year in Review

Muertos’ end of the year wrap podcast

Jacque Fresco's ribs or hip

Peter Joseph fails to convert Lauren Lyster

This chick grilling Peter Joseph Merola is my twitter crush, I'll admit it: http://t.co/EACEc3wH #TZM #TVP #RBE #Zeitgeist #PostScarcity

— Mario Brotha (@MarioBrotha) November 22, 2011

VTV says he gave Stefan Molyneux light bulbs

TZM Professor predicts economic collapse in 2012

Prof. Franz Hörmann beim Zeitgeist Movement Chapter Meeting 30.11.2011 

Einige User wollten uns ja keinen Glauben schenken, dass Franz Hörmann mit Zeitgeist sympathisiert und mit seinen “Anti Euro/Währungsplänen” auf Mitgliederfang ist.

Laut Hörmann, wird das Finanz- und Wirtschaftssystem am 01.01.2012 zusammenbrechen … Ein paar Tage haben wir ja noch ;-)

Operation Ghostbusters

Need4Spread: Anonymous Operation Ghostbusters http://t.co/ARXsHOFg @AnonNewsDE @Anon_Germany #Anonymous #Zeitgeist #Germany

— OP Ghostbusters (@OpGhostbusterz) November 21, 2011

Anonymous Takes Down TheZeitgeistMovement.com

Jacque Fresco replaces Aliens with Meteors

Linguistic Team Int. is saving the world

TZM UK Chapter admits to "Verbal Masturbation"

Split is included in the Venus Project FAQ

Mr. Peace On Earth

The Venus Project considering Cuba

Voiceofreason467 occupies Halloween

VTV wants to create comic books

Updates.
Working on putting together a team now. I have a connection at an up and coming comic book company who will take my work directly to the editors. If getting an art team together does not work out I am just going to switch to Novel format, not my first choice, but it has been frustrating to get an art team together. 

Peter Joseph is a lying Central Planner

It was a great honor to meet him and hang out with him in Stockholm 2010 for four days. Some bells started to go off when he said he did not see any reason for music to exist. Then there is the centrally planned system with all the inconvenient arrows to communism.

— VESA (@artbyvesa) May 5, 2019

Central planning and abundance. #thingsthatdontgotogether #TZM #TVP #Zeitgeist

— Professor Jim H. Jesus 🤘🏴💰🍕 (@JimJesus) March 14, 2011

What dictator should we hire to implement these structural reforms, Peter?

— Maria Rose 🌹🏳️‍🌈 (@mia_lentini) August 30, 2020

It’s just frustrating. And this is why people call it idealistic, bc there is no roadmap to a moneyless future where everyone has access to everything, technology fills in the labor gaps and all work is volunteered. Maybe 3020, bc the whole idea presumes an IRobot reality.

— Maria Rose 🌹🏳️‍🌈 (@mia_lentini) August 31, 2020

Jacque Fresco on Animal testing

Voiceofreason467 gets hacked

Check out the comments section, as I expose who hacked my account http://t.co/C0nqZfJU via @youtube

— voiceofreason467 (@VOR467) October 24, 2011

James Kush is no doubt the guy who hacked my account.

— voiceofreason467 (@VOR467) October 24, 2011

@JimJesus Ah, so you are responsible in some way for my accounts getting hacked. Great to know you have very low integrity.

— voiceofreason467 (@VOR467) October 24, 2011

More Racist Zeitards - IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER

More Racist Zeitards - IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER

Posted by Jim Jesus 

Updated: He hasn't learned his lesson. See below.
Came across this gem of a Zeitard today:

So if I disagree with Zeitgeist I jerk off to child porn? LOLWUT? Let's see who this guys is, we'll start with his favorites:

Me thinks this guy is projecting his sick pedo fetish on me. Let's check his recent activity:

A pedo AND a racist! NICE! Let's look closer, shall we? 

This guy makes voiceofretard467 look like MLK jr!

A Google search of his YouTube comments with the keyword "nigger" finds more than enough of of his racist nonsense. Here's some other gems I found with that search.

At 0:59, the fat black nigger from Afreakahhhhhhh is like, "That was nasty". Ironic considering that her appearance and weight would make her nasty automatically.

IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 7 months ago

All the white women at back we're all getting wet for this young black mans large and hard dick. They probably all rode him after the show, including Judge Judy, taking turns on his large pleasure pole.
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 1 month ago

The Zeitgeist Movement produces quality members, I must say!

Update: He was exposed and now he diabled his channel. Too bad Google got his whole history, happy searching: http://lmgtfy.com/?q=IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER+site%3Ayoutube.com
How about some Google Cache?

UPDATE:
Let's see what our friend has been up to lately. Surely he must of learned his lesson right?
http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=T3Yb3zzIGcE


@TheButterfly252 Hey nigger, the little nigger girl in the video has weaves, something all niggers go and get because they self-hate (racist towards themselves) about their own racial features. I don't blame them though, the nigger features are very disgusting to look at and have no aesthetic properties which is why you very rarely see any good looking nigger models on the world stage. Also, niggers have lower intelligence on average than all other human groups, just like most of them are poor.
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 2 weeks ago

This is pathetic http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=ztvBK0hb9P4&page=2

It's amazing how hard Beyonce is trying to make herself look white. I know a lot of African American 'women' in USA who wish so much to be white and have beautiful long straight hair like white girls do and have facial features that are actually attractive to men. Don't get me started on the ugly attitudes that black women are born with.
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 3 weeks ago

@IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER
You are RACIST to talk like that about "black womyn". You must be UGLY period, but YOUR attitude is ugliest!

&Beyonce is not trying so hard to make her self look white, she IS light-skinned and been. Her mother is of French descent. Dumbass!
MANAiiA 3 weeks ago

@IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER Oh wow, it's amazing how ignorant and racist you are being. Just because they prefer their hair straight they're suddenly 'trying to be white'? Asians have straight hair.. why is she copying white people and not asians? Okay, white people wants to be tanner and darker, does that mean they're trying to be black or asian?
reginakezya 3 weeks ago 37 

@reginakezya Beyonce is clearly trying to copy White people. Look at the straight hair she is artifically making on her head AND then dying it into a light colour like white people's - something black people can almost never achieve!!! :D Also, when people tan they aren't trying to look like the colour of shit, they're just after a slight glow "orange" tinge to their skin. They don't want to overcook and look like shit. :DD
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 2 weeks ago

@IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER Your fucking racist.
kim101318 2 weeks ago

@kim101318 I am just talking real stuff here which was always going to be found offensive by you because you are the target of the unfortunate facts of this world. Kim, a black Nigger woman in a white country, UK, talking to me on a white invention (computer). We run this world nigger bitch. You going to collect another welfare check that I paid for through my tax? How many children are you going to pop out this month? I know black sheboon love creating more criminal babies. Baboon! Ooga booga
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 2 weeks ago

@IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER Dont hide behind a screen being racist because if you want to be racist so badly, be racist in public and you will see the kind of reaction you will get. And im a teenager so i wouldnt be wanting to 'pop out any kids'. All the sluts and pregnant hoes i know these days are white.
kim101318 2 weeks ago

@kim101318 I am racist all the time in public, I make I set let others know how vile the Nigger beast is. About 80% of Nigger sheboons are unmarried (because they can't get a man) and have babies. True facts! Also, you are in the UK (White country), go back to Afreakahhhhhhh to see your bruddas and sistas and see them all fuck each other without a care in the world, k? Good. Afreakahhhhhh, your homeland, has plenty of AIDS and HIV like Niggers because of their uncontrolled sex behaviour. Freaks
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 2 weeks ago


What's disturbing about this one is that he's talking about minors. 

http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?threaded=1&v=0H99fI-HIxc


This comment has received too many negative votes hide
Imagine a big black ugly Nigger dick inside that beautiful White pale girl.
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 2 weeks ago


This comment has received too many negative votes hide
@IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER Yhur Juss So Racist Its A Damn Shame. Yhur Goinn To Hell Where Yhu Deserve To Be.
ImJussDoinnMe006 2 weeks ago

This comment has received too many negative votes hide
@ImJussDoinnMe006 There are a lot of ugly Black Nigger ape sheboons who want to see their ugly Black Nigger ape baboon men fuck the life out of petite and tiny, beautiful, blonde, and pale White girl. So that the ugly Black Nigger ape sheboons can finally get out of their insecurities about their ugly facial features, hair and attitude. A lot of ugly Black Nigger ape sheboons will acquire ashy skin in their lifetime and be single with more than one child and no husband.
IAM18YEARSOLDANDOVER 2 weeks ago

Peter Joseph wants a parallel government

My activist life in a nutshell:

People: ”We need social change! Everybody go vote!”

Me: “You realize you can’t ‘vote out’ the system of oppression that’s installed right? Why don’t you focus on that system rather than political games?”

People: “What’s a system?!”

Me: “#*^+%!”

— Peter Joseph (@ZeitgeistFilm) February 27, 2020

Build a parallel system that contradicts the current one

— Peter Joseph (@ZeitgeistFilm) February 28, 2020

Peter Joseph wants to Occupy stuff too

TZM = Fringe Group

POSTED BY MARI HERRERAS ON FRI, OCT 14, 2011 AT 3:00 PM

Mari Herreras talks Occupy Tucson on the Steve Leal show by TucsonWeekly

Zeitgeist Tucson or Occupy Tucson?

Then the unexpected — calls to the Range included frustrations over anti-Semitic comments, lack of women or people of color represented in the leadership, and then worries that those taking early leadership roles in planning were all part of the Zeitgeist Movement, and then the final concern was that anyone questioning these issues were being pushed out.

During the Steve Leal Show (which you can listen to above), Craig Barber, an Occupy Tucson volunteer and co-organizer, responded to these concerns. He’s an admin on the Occupy Tucson Facebook page, and part of the Occupy Tucson IT Working Group. He was also featured this week on Countdown with Keith Olbermann talking about putting together Occupy Tucson. He came into the radio station studio with another Occupy Tucson volunteer, Ethan Beasley, to discuss the movement.

Barber told us that the second planning meeting was scheduled on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur but the need to reschedule it was addressed. The general assembly voted to change the meeting from Saturday to Sunday to “accommodate those in the Jewish community.”

When Zeitgeist was brought up, Barber said the group was democratic and couldn’t control if there was any type of fringe element or demonstrators associated with controversial groups. Although, it was acknowledged that Asshat has been at the planning meetings.

“We are aware of him,” Barber said.

Why Zeitgeist (also known as the Venus Project) was brought to the Range’s attention as a concern is that some view the movement as a cult based on conspiracy theories on the illegitimate power of the federal government. But in Tucson some are more sensitive about the mention of Zeitgeist because of Jared Loughner. According to his friends interviewed after the Jan. 8 shooting, Loughner didn’t have any political allegiances, but an obsession with Zeitgeist. Loughner’s YouTube videos touched on Zeitgeist references on the Federal Reserve currency system and a government led system working to turn citizens into slaves. Much of this is available online in a series of videos produced by Zeitgeist, which have a large following.

“As I mentioned before we are open to everybody who wants to come out and peacefully say their peace,” Barber said. “You will hear from a fringe element in our society…. We are not going to censor anyone who comes out, say for someone who instigates violence. You might hear a Zeitgeist person come out and speak, but don’t let that shape your perception of the group as a whole. Let what shapes your perception of the group as a whole in what the general assembly decides.

“No singe political organization, no single religious group, no sort of elements politically have co-opted this. This is a grassroots community oriented group. All decisions are made by the general assembly,” Barber said.

Another concern raised is about the structure of the leadership people see before the general assembly and planning meetings — all male and mostly Anglo.

“It’s not just about inviting us to the dance, but sharing power,” Leal told Barber during the show. During break, Barber said they are aware of this issue and they are working on addressing changes. Another idea thrown out is to use progressive stacking, which would have to be voted on before the general assembling at the park this weekend — it means giving women and minorities first go in making comments and bringing ideas before the general assembly.

William Gazecki on Jacque Fresco

"It’s a 'lack of professional engagement', William Gazecki who in 2006 completed Future by Design, a feature-length profile of Jacque Fresco says, that has hurt Fresco the most. “The real missing link in Jacque’s world is having put Jacque to work,” Gazecki says, “[It’s] exemplified when people say: ‘Well, show me some buildings he’s built. And I don’t mean the domes out in Venus. I mean, let’s see an office building, let’s see a manufacturing plant, let’s see a circular city.’ And that’s where he should have been 30 years ago. He should have been applying his work, in the real world … [but] he’s not a collaborator, and I think that’s why he’s never had great public achievements.”

Gazecki Commentary

These comments from Gazecki are more suited to the "Influence" section. The use of Gazecki's quotes in the way it currently presented is not very encyclopedic. It reads more like a newspaper. Perhaps these quotes should be summed up and paraphrased?--Biophily (talk) 01:18, 24 December 2013 (UTC)

Earl King, you keep moving the paragraph. It belongs better to the "Influence" subsection because Gazecki is explaining why Fresco has not been a large influence in architecture and society in general. Just because you want to strike the reader immediately with a negative sentiment does not make it the proper place for that paragraph. It's better to move it to the "Influence" subsection, and have the lead sentences of the criticism section be neither criticism nor praise. BLP's require balance, unlike other types of articles.--Biophily (talk) 01:36, 24 December 2013 (UTC)

I don't think so. You also used a false edit summary in the process of reverting. You also created a very funny sounding section called theoretical criticism and that is too odd a way to present things. You removed Gazecki's comment from the actual critical section where it belonged. It is a powerful and succinct statement about Fresco and unlike most of the fluff now in that section and honorific blessing type of material, it presents a different and direct view of Fresco from someone who made a film about him and knew him intimately because of that. So, burying information at the bottom in a badly phrased topic heading that has nothing to do with the critical value of what Gazecki said seems wrong for the article. It is a continuance of your former editing style which is not neutral. You removed and buried the information also twice with false edit summaries. You reverted this three times including your first revert. Earl King Jr. (talk) 04:45, 24 December 2013 (UTC)

Leaderless Movement? Nope.

Presentation Topic:

“When Normality becomes Distortion: Reflections on a World gone Mad.” This program will consider the quality of our beliefs, actions and intents within the overarching context of what supports good public health, prosperity and sustainability and what does not. The subjects of Politics, Economics and Religious Philosophy will be broadly considered, with one basic question asked: Are the dominant views of reality today and the values that arise from them sustainable for the species’ survival?

Peter Joseph is the creator of the world famous, award winning “Zeitgeist Film Series” and founder of the controversial “Zeitgeist Movement” which seeks to shift our social system into a more sustainable paradigm, Peter continues to focus on media related expressions, including music composition, performance & film production, each with the focus on affecting society for the better. He has also lectured around the world on the topics of social sustainably and has been featured in the New York Times, Russia Today, TedX and many other outlets.

TZM mod on facebook cannot admit TZm has a leader

Gilbert Ismail shows his true colors

Mark Dice still thinks that TZM is communist

The "Zeitgeist Movement" isn't really a movement, it's pretty much an email list of pipe dreaming communists. Move along.Nothing to see here

— Mark Dice (@MarkDice) October 6, 2011

@MarkDice Zeitgeist is communist? whats communistic about a system w/ no monetary value or wage pay? W/ freedom (cont) http://t.co/ktSSsJ5a

— E. Hef (@MoJoRising89) October 6, 2011

Voiceofreason467's lost interview

The Zeitgeist Movement occupies OWS

Acharya's suggestion for the Zeitgeist Movement

Credit: Alt-Universe

VTV goes through cancer scare

VTV has cancer

Cybernated Farm Systems LLC

Active Apopka, FL

Cybernated Farm Systems LLC filed as a Florida Limited Liability in the State of Florida on Wednesday, September 28, 2011, as recorded in documents filed with Florida Department of State.

Ron Paul v Peter Joseph v Jacque Fresco

Ray Kurzweil debunks Zeitgeist Neo-Luddites

Roxanne Meadows promises abundant abundance

Peter Joseph says Keynes recognized Technological Unemployment

Credit: Jim Jesus

Peter Merola caught quote-mining to push fraudulent economics argument.

Hovind 2.0: Peter Joseph Quote Mines Keynes to Lie To His Followers.

1st Zeitgeist Media Festival

Jacque Fresco admits he doesn't have a PHD again

Here comes the Thrive Movement

Photo Credit: Justin Templer

The Venus Project will take your property

Peter Joseph's "Nowhere To Hide" hypocrisy and lie

The hurt feelings of a girl

Peter Joseph is against transparency

Jacque Fresco isn't sure if Cigars are natural

Zeitgeist confronts its "Paid" Critics

The Nadir of Paranoia: Zeitgeist Confronts its Paid Critics. (UPDATED!)

Posted on August 23, 2011 by Muertos

This blog, originally published August 23, 2011, was updated September 8, 2011, and again on September 19, 2011. Scroll to the end for the updates.

I did not want to do another Zeitgeist blog, which will be my second in a week. I would really rather move on to other things. But once in a while the Zeitgeist Movement says something so outrageous, bizarre and extreme that it’s difficult to let it pass without comment. Thus, here we are again.

This time the statement comes directly from the top: the cult’s leader and director of the Zeitgeist films, arch-conspiracy theorist Peter Joseph Merola. I’m assuming you’re familiar with the fracas that occurred last week regarding a Zeitgeist Movement member who posted a topic on their forum that unmistakably and unequivocally advocated acts of wanton violence and terrorism, especially against an undefined “elite” that the member believes is in control of the world. That topic was eventually deleted. The deletion caused some controversy on the Zeitgeist forums. As he sometimes does, the movement’s leader, Merola, stepped in to add his “final word” and to lock the topic. Merola states:

“Keep moving forward and stop paying attention to these trolls. Remember, they have a job to do and will seek anything to exploit. So the more you all talk about it, the more they get paid and have to run with. (yes, I have inside info that the major trolls are paid to do what they do which explains why they are able to blog everyday, monitoring almost everything from this Forum to our Facebook pages to Youtube. It is nothing new. Just watch. Every word I say here will end up twisted on one of the blogs. Timing tests have been run by a few of us to see how fast these guys can catch things that are posted and removed and they seem to be working almost in real time meaning there are likely many of them working in shifts, hiding behind one name/blog.)the original thread noted should not have been deleted- it should have been addressed and corrected.”

As you can see I havent twisted any of his words; this is exactly what he said. We can even set aside, for the purposes of this blog, the last sentence which expresses support for the original pro-violence post. Merola is employing the fallacy that whatever the trolls think is bad, he is going to praise. Thats quite poor judgment for him, but thats neither here nor there.

The topic in which this statement appears directly refers to my previous blog, so when they refer to trolls they are clearly talking about me. In case the import of this statement escapes you, here is the leader of the Zeitgeist Movement directly asserting that I am being paid to write anti-Zeitgeist blogs. In simpler terms used more often by conspiracy theorists, I am accused—by the leader of the Zeitgeist Movement—of being a “paid disinformation agent.”

The “Disinformation Agent” Trope in Context

This is not the first time such an accusation has been leveled against me. In fact it happens pretty frequently, as the “paid disinformation agent” trope (sometimes referred to as a “shill”) is an extremely common one among conspiracy theorists. It was used against me only last week on a Facebook group I occasionally post on which was flooded by 9/11 Truthers. Among the most paranoid of paranoid conspiracy theorists, any person who disagrees with conspiracy theories in any way is probably a “paid disinformation agent.” The charge is leveled against people, as it was in this case by Mr. Merola, without a single shred of proof. It comes about as a result of a convergence of two factors: first, disagreement with conspiracy theories; and second, an arrogant certainty on the part of the person making the charge that no one could disagree with conspiracy theories unless they were being paid to do so.

Several things fascinate me about the statement as it was made here. First, it comes directly from Merola himself, speaking for and with the voice of the Zeitgeist Movement. Secondly, it illustrates the deep thrall of conspiracy theorist thinking and conspiracy theorist ideology that emanates from the very top of the Zeitgeist Movement and the primacy of such ideology to the group. Thirdly, it demonstrates, far better than I can do with my own words, how and why members of the Zeitgeist Movement fundamentally misunderstand the criticisms made against them. Merola’s statement is so illuminating as to speak volumes about what this organization really is, what it believes in and why it will never be taken seriously.

Okay, Who’s Paying Me, And How Do You Know?

First things first, Merola’s charge is so ludicrous on its face as to be actually funny. I mean, does he really believe I get paid to do this? By who? The government? I assume that must be what he and other Zeitgeisters are thinking, though in this topic they don’t specifically identify the source of my supposed salary. It’s clear that many of them are thinking the same thing, though. One user comments, following Merola’s initial statement:

“Wouldnt it be interesting, Peter, to trace their salaries back to the source; we both probably know very well where it would lead.”

Yes, in their delusional fantasies it would, of course, lead to THE GUBBERMINT, the evil powers-that-be who are so terrified of the Zeitgeist Movement that they would use taxpayer’s money to pay me to write blogs trashing them. This demonstrates the astonishing arrogance of Zeitgeist members, and one they share with conspiracy theorists at large. They believe that their ideology and ideas are so airtight that no one could or would legitimately disagree with them—and because of this certainty, they assume that anyone who does so must be proceeding from some ulterior motive.

This type of thinking is common among Zeitgeisters. One prominent pro-Zeitgeist blogger has been searching for over a year to discern my “true motivation” for opposing Zeitgeist, since he refuses to believe it is because I oppose the Movement’s emphasis on conspiracy theories. No; he’s sure there’s some other ulterior motivation that must explain my intransigence. Well, Merola seems to have figured that one out: he thinks I oppose Zeitgeist because somebody, most likely the government, is paying me to oppose it.

That’s a very easy out for Zeitgeisters, isn’t it? “Oh, no one really disagrees with the Zeitgeist Movement. The ones who say they do are just being paid to!” This absolves them from dealing with the true reasons why people criticize them. It is also deeply and incorrigibly paranoid.

This is what they think? Really? They think the evil gubbermint, in the guise of hobbyist bloggers, is out to get them in some sort of grand shadowy conspiracy? As astounding as a fairy tale like that is to rational eyes and ears, in actuality it’s not too far from the fairy tales that most Zeitgeisters fervently believe—like “9/11 was an inside job,” one of the most notorious false conspiracy theories pushed by Merola in the Zeitgeist movies.

After this statement, it is impossible to maintain that Zeitgeist is not a movement based upon conspiracy theories and conspiracy thinking, appealing mostly to conspiracy theorists, and which filters its entire worldview through a conspiratorial mindset.

I also find it interesting that Merola says he has “inside info that the major trolls are paid to do what they do.” Oh, really? I’d be interested to see this “info.” In fact, in this blog I call upon him to make this “info” public. How does he know I’m being paid? Is it, as I suspect, simply more innuendo and broad leaps of intuition, to which conspiracy theorists are especially prone?

The Truth About This Blog (And Its Relationship To Others)

In all fairness Merola is not referring to me alone. Although anyone anywhere who voices any criticism of the Zeitgeist Movement is subject to being called a “troll,” when Merola refers to “the blogs” I suspect he means this one as well as James Kush’s, which is specifically devoted to criticism of Zeitgeist. Another prominent anti-Zeitgeist blogger is “MarioBrotha,” but he has been on hiatus both on his blog regarding the Zeitgeist Movement and his other blog about Desteni, another notorious cult that uses conspiracy theories as a recruiting tool.

I do not know James Kush. I’ve replied to him a few times on Twitter or on web forums but we don’t correspond or collaborate. Not long ago he posted something on his blog referencing one of my blog entries. I messaged him on Facebook (he is not a friend of mine on Facebook) asking him to correct a typo, which he did. That’s the total extent of coordination I’ve ever had with James Kush. I don’t agree with everything on James Kush’s blog; he uses a lot of hyperbole and dramatic language that I think overstates the case against Zeitgeist. I feel the same way about “MarioBrotha,” who I also don’t know and have never collaborated with. We are not “in cahoots” in any way. My blog is my own. I alone make the decisions about what I’m going to write about and when.

There is a person who is active on YouTube who also criticizes the Zeitgeist Movement. His handle is “RonaldoDeLosMuertos.” On at least one occasion Merola has mistaken me for him. I guess that’s understandable; it’s a pretty wild coincidence that two different guys out there, who have never met each other, are both known on the net by handles incorporating the words “Los Muertos” and who are both critical of the Zeitgeist Movement, and as we know, conspiracy theorists are loath to believe in coincidence. But I’m not Ronaldo. We have no working relationship and no collaboration on blogs.

If you’ll notice, at least since mid-2010 my blogs about Zeitgeist have been largely reactive: responding to things Zeitgeisters say and do. Kush, Mario and Ronaldo often work on the same basis. If, for instance, a Zeitgeister makes statements directly advocating violence, it’s likely several people working independently of each other will choose to comment on that incident. If the Zeitgeist Movement splits from the Venus Project—which is the single most important thing that’s happened to the Movement in the past year, with the possible exception of the Loughner shooting—you can also expect more than one comment on that incident. Furthermore, various bloggers who are critical of Zeitgeist are active on Twitter, and as you know, on Twitter it’s very easy to re-tweet the content posted by others. People who share viewpoints about anything—politics, music, movies, celebrities, etc.do that. It’s the essence, in fact, of social networking.

Merola seems to read a lot into the fact that “troll” blogs are updated frequently—and this may be the source of his evident delusion that criticizing Zeitgeist is some sort of “full time job” which is possible only if it earns a dedicated salary. This too is ridiculous. Yes, I have posted many articles this summer. That’s not surprising, considering my work deals with education and summer is my off-season. Would it surprise you to know that I’ve also written two novels this summer? Or that I covered a music festival and wrote a 30+ page review, which in fact is beginning its run on a music website on the very day I’m writing this blog? Would it surprise you to know that I own and operate three other blogs in addition to this one, none of which have anything to do with Zeitgeist or conspiracy theories? Would it surprise you to know that I’m doing research for a book on American history? Or that I have a significant other and family members with whom I spend a great deal of time?

Would it surprise you to know that this article, from inception to publication, took a little more than an hour to write, edit, polish and upload—and that I spent more time on this particular article than I usually do?

What’s also amusing is the fact that criticizing Zeitgeist is not the point of this blog. I don’t do blogs on Zeitgeist alone. I blog about movies. I blog about technology and communications. I blog about history. I blog about politics. I blog about books. And yes, I’ve blogged about Desteni. In another ironic twist, I once had a Zeitgeister claim that my investigation of Desteni was just a sham, and that it was really about Zeitgeist—that I’m making stuff up about Desteni and trying to use it to make Zeitgeist look worse than it is.

Are you beginning to understand the unwarranted sense of self-importance that these people have?

Do you want to know the single most popular article, in terms of page views, in the history of this blog? Here it is. It has nothing to do with Zeitgeist, Desteni, or conspiracy theories. It’s about the Wacken Open Air festival. I originally wrote it years ago and republished it here when I opened this blog on Blog.com (which costs nothing to use, by the way). Looking at the hit statistics, month after month it is that article that’s most read, by a wide margin. So for Merola to claim that “the more you all talk about it, the more they get paid” is asinine. Since my most all-time popular blog article is about Wacken, are the Zeitgeisters going to claim that perhaps Im being paid by the organizers of the Wacken festival?

Merola’s claim that not only am I paid by the government, but that I must be more than one person—or have a dedicated staff that monitors Zeitgeist 24/7 and works in “shifts”—is so far in the realm of delusion that it constitutes science fiction. I’m not sure how his “timing tests” prove that I have a staff. Again, if there is any evidence of these bizarre and paranoid claims, let him present it. Somehow I don’t think he will.

The Bottom Line

Just to be very clearly on record I will make a number of clear and unequivocal statements. Not because I feel the charge of “paid disinformation agent” has any validity, but because if I don’t, the Zeitgeist conspiracy theorists will read some oblique admission of guilt into my failure to make them. So, here they are.

• I am not paid by any person, agency, group, board, bureau, business interest, coalition, cartel or any other entity to write this blog.
• I make no money whatsoever from this blog. Even the ads on the page don’t inure to my benefit; they go (I suppose) to support the webservers of Blog.com.
• Writing this blog is not my job, my occupation or the central/most important thing in my life. Far from it. In fact, if you asked me to make a list of the 100 most important things in my day-to-day life, this blog might be about number 90.
• I oppose Zeitgeist because it is the source of a great deal of belief in conspiracy theories. If you ask a believer in conspiracy theories how he or she began believing in them, it’s very likely they’ll tell you their interest was sparked by one of two things: Alex Jones or Zeitgeist: The Movie. All of my criticisms of the Zeitgeist Movement—its promotion and advancement of conspiracy thinking and conspiracist ideology, its weird worldview, its advocacy of violence, its cult characteristics—are tied in one way or another to the central truth that Zeitgeist is a conspiracy movement.
• Every criticism of the Zeitgeist Movement that I’ve ever made on this blog is one that I genuinely believe on the basis of reliable evidence and cogent reasoning. I am not “making stuff up.”
• I believe that pushing back against conspiracy theories, debunking them and shedding light on their deceptions is a positive social good that has positive real-world consequences.
• I do not oppose Zeitgeist because I am paid to do so.
• I am not a Christian. I do not oppose Zeitgeist because of any religious “bigotry” or any other religious reason.
• I do not support unfettered free market capitalism. I do not oppose Zeitgeist because it supposedly threatens a capitalistic world order. Although I think Zeitgeist’s economic ideas are ridiculous, I do not oppose Zeitgeist out of economic ideology.
• I have never been a member of the Zeitgeist Movement, have never posted on their forum and have never been in any way associated with them. (The charge is occasionally made against me that I’m a “disgruntled former member,” or that I employ “sock puppet accounts”).
• I do not believe Zeitgeist is “occult,” or is part of the “New World Order” or any such rubbish.
• I am not Ronaldo DeLosMuertos, James Kush or MarioBrotha. I do not collaborate with any of these people and I do not coordinate any content that appears on this blog with any other person.
• I do not have a staff working for me.

I believe this is as exhaustive a reply to a bizarrely paranoid idea as is warranted—in fact, it’s probably extreme overkill. Ideally I’d like to say that this will serve as my final words on this blog regarding the Zeitgeist Movement. But every time I think this organization can’t top their latest blunder, they seem to find a way to surprise me. Perhaps next time I should merely let their incompetence, stupidity and paranoia speak for itself; those qualities are becoming so prominent and unmistakable that they are beginning to eclipse Zeitgeist’s critics’ capacity to interpret them.

Thanks for reading.

Update 8 September 2011

Yesterday, September 7, Peter Merola gave a podcast/web broadcast in which he addressed, among other things, the subject of anti-Zeitgeist disinformation campaigns. You can hear his broadcast here. I listened in, curious if he would perhaps present the information he claims he has that I am paid to write this blog and to criticize the Zeitgeist Movement.

He did not. That doesn't surprise me, because of course there is no such evidence; Merola just made it up. He did, however, elaborate on his own delusion of persecution by making some remarks about the disinformation phenomenon. Although Merola was as unclear and deliberately verbose as he usually is, near as I can tell he seems to believe that I and other bloggers who comment negatively on Zeitgeist are employed by some sort of for-profit entity whose business is to smear people and organizations on the Internet. Merola got there by stating the existence of reputation companies, which help you rehabilitate your image on the Internet for a fee, and then supposing that there are also companies that do the exact opposite, to smear somebody for a fee.

This is, of course, absurd. Yes, there are reputation companies that help you rehabilitate your image on the Internet. That is true. But the opposite does not exist. Any company that had that as a business model is asking for trouble, because theyre opening themselves up to liability for defamation; no one would write insurance for such a company. Furthermore, how are you supposed to find such a firm, even if one exists? The Yellow Pages? Switchboard.com?

Its also interesting that Merola never identified precisely who is supposed to have hired the nonexistent company that I supposedly work for. He said nothing about that. He merely droned on about COINTELPRO, which is a favorite conspiracy theorist meme; Merola did acknowledge that COINTELPRO no longer exists, but this went by so quickly that you could barely catch it. No, he went on to compare the supposed persecution of the Zeitgeist Movement to the FBI campaign against Martin Luther King in the 1960's.

Yes, you read that right. Merola invited a comparison between himself and Martin Luther King. Because I write blogs criticizing Zeitgeist, I am as evil as the FBI was in the 1960's by trying to impede civil rights.

Obviously this whole thing is ridiculous. I need not state again, as I did in the main part of this blog, that I'm not paid by anyone to write this blog, and the idea that someone disagrees with Zeitgeist only because they're paid to is ludicrous, arrogant and delusional. This is, I believe, nothing short of a concerted strategy of criticism avoidance. Merola is telling his foll owers that they need not even consider any criticism leveled at the movement, because those who criticize it are being paid to, so naturally all their points are completely irrelevant and made-up. This is another example of cult-like behavior: theyre being paid to criticize Zeitgeist is a thought-ending cliché, which is a tactic commonly used by cult leaders to short-circuit any possibility that their followers might think critically about the indoctrination to which they have been exposed.

Aside from flogging the disinformation horse, Merola did say, offhandedly, one thing that was very encouraging. In talking about the redesign of the Zeitgeist Movement website, he told his followers that there will no longer be a centralized web forum. Essentially, Zeitgeists forum will eventually be shut down. I guess Merola and his moderators are tired of Movement members saying embarrassing things that result in frenzied attempts at spin control. Individual chapters, supposedly, can institute forums on their own websites if they want to, Merola said, but the big show is off as soon as the new site goes up, whenever that is.

This will probably mean the effective end of the Zeitgeist Movement. As an organization that exists almost entirely on the Internet, the lack of any central communicative function within the cult will effectively kill it. The Zeitgeist chapters are, for the most part, pretty irrelevant to the cult; from what I've been able to observe most of them exist only on paper, or at least their real-world presence is not very significant. If the cult is reduced to a website providing one-way communication, I don't really see how the movement uses that as a base for growth. Zeitgeists numbers are declining anyway. According to Alexa.com, which I check now and again to see how many people are surfing onto various Zeitgeist-related sites, considerably fewer people are interested in the Zeitgeist Movement now than were at the beginning of 2011. That does not bode well for a movement that insisted its third movie, the interminable Zeitgeist: Moving Forward, would bring in millions of new members.

Now if youll excuse me, I must go collect my paycheck from COINTELPRO.

Update 19 September 2011

The pro-Zeitgeist blogger to whom I linked above did another blog on me recently clarifying his position. He now pronounces that the reason I oppose Zeitgeist is because my father was in the military, and therefore I must be acting out of patriotic motives and opposing Zeitgeist because it threatens my beloved country. He got there by churning through my Twitter posts for hints of my personal life and family background, and happily seized upon something he thought he could sell as a reason why someone like me is so thick-headed as to not immediately accept the Zeitgeist Movement and Peter Joseph Merola as the savior of all mankind.

This supposition itself is so ridiculous as to be beneath substantive comment. At least he didn't jump on the paid disinformation agent bandwagon, as his leader Merola has done. I remark only that its yet another example of precisely the effect I describe in this blog: refusal by Zeitgeist members to believe that there are legitimate reasons for opposing their group and their ideology, and that those reasons are not, and never have been, concealed from anyone. It also illustrates, again, the depth of conspiracist thinking at the core of Zeitgeist ideology. In a conspiracist worldview, all motives are hidden, and all truths must be revealed through detective work. There's no such thing as taking someone at face value. If someone says they oppose Zeitgeist because it pushes conspiracy theories, they must be lying; indeed, that person must be a conspiracy theorist themselves! The nadir of paranoia at which the Zeitgeist Movement exists can have no more eloquent demonstration.

Another TZMer says SP members get paid by the guberment! http://t.co/69ffTm8M8R

— Alt-Universe (@TVPMovieTracker) July 10, 2013

No I'm serious, checks stopped so I stopped. #TZM #Zeitgeist pic.twitter.com/TTs425MH

— The Most Goodest JimJesus🤘🏴💰🍕 (@JimJesus) October 7, 2012

Another TZMer says SP members get paid by the guberment!

https://conspiracies.skepticproject.com/forum/5549/another-tzmer-says-sp-members-get-paid-by-the-guberment/