I'm thinking of starting an "intentional community" or commune, any takers ?

[NightWatcher]

It will not be a religious cult, but a bunch of us who are sick of this country's government. I'm working on a manifesto (or mission statement). It will be a self sufficient society where we grow our own food and take care of ourselves. I am looking for suggestions as to where we might locate this community outside of the US. There will be no weird "sex things" going on, that are pervasive in communes and cults. We will not circumsize ourselves in an attempt to ride a comet to a space ship or anything crazy like that. We will just live and let live. I am interested in any other ideas that you may have as well as any takers to this idea.

I'm open to any advice that you may have.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

1. No way!

No weird "sex things" going on?

Fuggedaboudit, I'll go to the "other" intentional community. The one with the sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll that we were promised 40 years ago

:rofl:

[SmokingJacket]

2. Only if you promise no meetings.

Meetings are what killed all those communes back in the 70's.

[Lil Missy]

3. Nope. This is my country and I am staying here,

even if only to make the lives of freepers miserable. Well, Especially that.

[chaska]

4. I did a formal visit (3 weeks) to Twin Oaks Community in VA...

I was halfway considering moving there.

But there were things that I couldn't deal with:
1) Communal housing. No way, I need my space. Has to be optional.
2) I found life without air conditioning in a VA summer too much to take. There are natural air conditioning alternatives that Twin Oaks did not pursue.
3) No private money to speak of (despite 42 hour work week at community owned businesses.
4) Too restrictive of automobile use. I understand why: pollution, etc. But they needed alternatives. Some of us just can't stay "home" for weeks at a time.

Problems with communes in general:
1) Tend to attract males disproportionally.
2) Can be a bit too dogmatic/restrictive.
3) Attract too many weirdos. Though this was not a huge problem for Twin Oaks.
4) Few are willing to take responsibility for anything. The tools (gardening, kitchen), for example, were in very bad shape.

All in all, I would consider the idea of communal living a good one, and one whose time is rapidly coming again (peak oil, global warming, imminent financial collapse, fascism). I would highly recommend a visit to Twin Oaks to all. It's a great cheap vacation ($60 for three weeks - includes everything! Can't beat it with a stick!), a great learning experience, the people are wonderful, the food outstanding. People always worry about cult stuff and drugs. The cult thing is just silly, and as for the second question, communitarians have little money, and therefore drug use is seldom seen (at Twin Oaks anyway). I saw one joint in three weeks.

If you're serious about this, I would definitely study Twin Oaks (there is a book or two out there about them). They've managed to make it work for over thirty years, they're doing something right. I believe they are the longest lived commune in the US. The Farm in TN is no longer a commune, striclty speaking.

Consider Chile. I've been thinking about expatriating too. Chile looks awesome. For many reasons.

[KamaAina]

5. Ran across this the other day

while I was looking for ways to (re)build green urban communities, i.e., the Lower Ninth Ward and New Orleans East.

http://www.greencenturyinstitute.org/network.htm

Based on a growing body of data, there is an urgent need to convert existing communities and develop new communities for true sustainability. In the first decades of the 21st Century, urban renovation and new town developments worldwide can realize significant short and long term benefits from green design methodologies that combine ecological architecture with sustainable construction, maintenance, energy technologies and resources. Federal and civic agencies, industry and academic research groups, developers, architects and urban designers, marketers of green products and services, urban renovation projects and experimental "intentional communities" are all interested in fostering a broader understanding and application of green design resources. These entities are in need of interaction and information-exchange to rapidly accelerate a new urban development paradigm. The Green Community Network is being developed by a circle of independent experts to fill this need, with an Internet-based information hub, a publishing and media production program, a series of exchange programs and international conferences.

They already have a network of communties around the globe, including developing nations such as India.