Healthy soil and sustainable growing

["mtncats" <mtncats@myway.com>]

Actually Paul, there are many examples of "unrelated people working together 
to provide for their needs on common property and sharing in the proceeds".  
One down the road here is Twin Oaks, founded in 1967: 
http://www.twinoaks.org/  

It's patterned after Israeli kibbutzim 
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFAArchive/2000_2009/2002/11/Focus%20on%20Israel-%20Kibbutz
 , although Twin Oakers prefer "intentional community".  

The kibbutz we lived on for a time in the 70's was founded by Russian Jews in 
1921.  Still going strong, as are most of the other 267.  When we were there 
the major argument was over how to spend the profits, private TVs or improved 
clubhouse.  Since then, the children no longer are raised in children's 
houses as they were for the first 60 years, spending extended time with their 
parents only on Saturdays.  

Organizations like these attract a small minority, but function well.  We 
experienced serious arm-twisting to join a new kibbutz organizing on the 
Golan Heights, overlooking the Sea of Galilee.  Beautiful spot, but we 
concluded we weren't joiners, ultimately finding our very private place in 
the woods here.

Seems to me that your observations apply to most, but clearly not all.  I 
haven't visited, but know of a number of communal organizations scattered 
across Europe.

Tom (not particularly hip in central Va) 




 --- On Fri 05/11, TradingPostPaul < tradingpost@riseup.net > wrote:
Reduced down to its essentials: what does *not* work is unrelated people
working together to provide for their needs on common property and sharing
in the proceeds. People just will not commit to such a communal
arrangement. It's not a matter of culture but of human nature. 

What does work, and always has, is natural families and individuals living
on their own property or space in close proximity to others and cooperating
on a voluntary basis to meet their needs. It's called a village or tribe.
Societies have been organized this way for eons. 

It's not a choice between modern society's alienation and communal living.
Neither is viable. People can group together in close proximity without
making it a communal arrangement, and can cooperate and have specialization
of labor. That will be needed far more in the future.

paul tradingpost@lobo.net


_______________________________________________
No banners. No pop-ups. No kidding.
Make My Way  your home on the Web - http://www.myway.com