Communes. Ever lived in one? Would you join one?

Would you be willing to join a commune? A place of self-reliance, and sustenance for all? Pool your resources, live for the good of all. Mother Earth can supply you with many of your needs, if you understand her and treat her right.

There were many communes in the US and Canada in the 60's and 70's. Those were the groundbreakers, and we could learn a lot from their experiences.

Have any members here ever lived in a commune? I would love to hear your experiences.

JS communes are ok until they get too big for our governments to be comfortable, that is when trouble happens and then we get tragic incidents.

I have never been in a commune and only if something happen globally and I am one of the survivors then I guess I will have no choice if that is the only way to my survival and that of my family.

Back in the 60s and 70s communes were considered hippish and you know how much many people tend to refer to hippies now a day. . .

Personally I like hippies.

I have lived in a couple and visited more. The ones I lived in were more urban co-living type of arrangements in the late 70's... we pooled our resources and rented a three story house (in both cases) and each person had a share in the operation and maintainance of it and we made decisions collectively as to what to grow on what little land we had but also what to buy and who would do what that the local co-op for our shares of it. it was interesting and fun. The first one fell apart due to personality conflicts and the second lasted into the early 80's and fell apart as people paired off and started families of their own. The places I have visited are all still in existance, the Farm in Summerville Tn. Twin Oaks ourside of Richmond Va. and North Mountain outside of Eagle rock Va. The thing that made them all different is that they were/are very much land oriented and they developed marketable crafts to substain them. Twin Oaks for example makes (excellent) hammocks clothing and sandals.

grover

Ever been to Vermont? There are a few communes still alive up there. Land is still cheap in some areas.

I lived in Maine from 74 to 91 (and would move back in a heartbeat if family obligations didn't keep me here) and I have been all over new england... don't kid yourself though except for northern Maine land prices up there are deep... they are much cheaper here in the south. I spent some time at an ashram on Georgetown Maine. been to Vermont many times but never to one of their communities. Why the interest?

Most communes these days are very suburbanized and subscripted. They tend to rent warehouses, and retrofit them for living quarters. This way nosy people don't interfere as much, and the have shelter.

There's two or three I know of around here, and they seldom cause trouble. That is except for one. Whenever someone ditches with all of the weed, they ramble all over town, grumbling.

I have lived in several communes. I loved it and would do it again if circumstances permitted. I loved the comraderie and the pooling of knowledge and resources was a great benefit. When I lived in an artist's community, it was wonderful being able to brainstorm all kinds of creative ideas with others. There were always very interesting people who came to visit the members.
But you have to have the right combination of people. All it takes is just one disruptive person to upset the whole commune.
Basically, our ancestors all lived in communal settings - it was called "tribe" then. It is the natural way for humans to live, we are not solitary creatures.

No I have never lived in a commune or visited one. I have read about them and fantasized living in one. I think that I am too old now, because I believe living in a commune requires mutual input by all.

I think that it would be great, go for it!

Just curious, that's all. You'd said you had visited a couple down VA way, and I was wondering if you and I ever crossed paths in one.


Never too old, my friend! Let the youngsters have their own brand of fun; we baby boomers can just sit back and enjoy the life!


You are right about the "one disruptive person".

But that was when we were young and hot-headed. Now we are older and lazier, and much less prone to conflict.

Plus, an "older" community has several advantages over the teen-based communes we knew. We are more settled, financially. We have more assets. We have more common sense, gained through experience. Conflicts are much less likely to occur, and more readily solved.

I have a blueprint of such a commune in my mind, complete with a "Computer Barn" where we could all still hook up with ATS, etc. I envision it being somewhere where the climate is moderate and the air and water are pure. Kentucky? Tennessee?

You make a good point JSOBecky about being older and having less conflicts. However, the commune I lived in the longest was in the late '90's with other baby boomers. I was one of the youngest at 44 or so y.o. We still had our share of conficts. Of course, we had more than one "disruptive persons".
I live in NE Tennessee. Land is still relatively cheap and people don't bother you much. It's beautiful, the people are very laid back and friendly and well, we moved here from California 2 years ago and have fallen in love with it. A good place for a commune, IMO.

Well like i said the ones down south that I have visited are North Mountain (on North Mountain north of Eagle Rock Va) Twin Oaks outside of Richmond Va and the Farm in Summerton (or Summertown) Tn. I visited all 3 in the mid 70's.

JSO, I think there is going to come a point and time where communes are going to be a necessity for survival. The day of being financially independent is just about deceased right along with all of the dreams that go with it.

Look at what's happening right here in the United States. The big corporations are hiring illegal immigrants so they don't have to pay an honest wage to anyone. The government, at least here in the United States, is trying to get rid of the middle class. It wants there to be two classes. The super poor and the super rich.

It has already gotten to the point to where if you don't have a degree from a university/college or trade school you might as well forget about getting a job that will pay you over 6-7 dollars an hour. You can't survive on that unless your working 60-70 hours a week, and most places don't want to give you 40.

So, yeah, I'd join a commune if I had to, and hope the government didn't label us as being some kind of a "cult" or "anti-government" society.

[edit on 25-3-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

I plan to live in a commune someday.

I suppose you would have to find one that fits your personality and your needs as far as what it is founded or based upon.

There are many listed on the internet if you look them up, they are in just about every state and many countries as well.

I like the idea of pooling resources and each individual using his or her own strengths to add to the community. Organic food is a good way to eat and alot of communes offer an opportunity to grow and eat that way.

I would like to find one that had like minded people to me.

The rainbow people in oregon have a good thing going. I have looked into it many times, but never taken the plunge, yet............

I've never lived in a commune, but I think it would be an interesting
experience, so long as I had internet connection and technology.

I'm actually lucky when it comes to this, as there are 75 communes
in my state, and alot of them share the same base ideologies as I do.


However, I don't think I could really do well in a commune just be-
cause it was leftist liberal, since some of my beliefs are not exactly
those shared by the majority on that side, and some others are shared
by a very small group of people.

I think that I could do well in a commune with people who shared the
same ideology as I do (of course I only know one person who does),
but otherwise I think I am a little to confrontational to do so.

speakerofturth i think you are way off base...i didnt go to college and i cleared 75K last year and my income level doesnt have a ceiling...if anything now a days to make a decent buck you have to create your own niche and make your own way getting a degree only guarentees you make others money while you are in school and will most likely fall into a job making someone else rich...

in this day & age, check out "Eco-Village" there's likely at least one style
of vision & practice that will fill your bill,
but it's no longer a hippy-dippy, carefree, let it all hang out kind of thing,
where dopers abound & call the Tune...it's finally growed up some
(& its not so much a christian + communism theme either)




lived in one yes,
but we were interested in providing shelter or just a jump-off place for people that were in flight from Vietnam war junk. a kind of underground railroad project of sorts...doing what we could, in Wash. DC

now-a-days i would think that ideology/lifestyle/ecology would be motivating factors in a village or hamlet or even commune setting

hey, didn't David Koresch run a commune of sorts?
and that Applegate guy in Phoenix/Scottsdale AZ had the heavens' gate crew

sorry, the forum wizard acted up.........................
this is the result of a extra post or inadvertant click!

[edit on 25-3-2007 by St Udio]

A lot of the ideas about living in a commune sound really neat, but how economically sustainable are they? I wouldn't want to do it if my standard of living went down the toilet because we could barely scrape by on what we had.

I'd also want to have access to the same kinds of technology that I have now, like computers, cars, refrigerators, and all the other modern conveniences. I'd go crazy in Amish territory, for example. (with no offense intended to those people, I could just never live like one)

There would be a lot of things to think about before joining a commune, but given the right set of circumstances (many things I can think of that would waste time and bore you to list) I could perhaps see myself doing it.

One thing I am absolutely sure of - you'd have to leave religion out of any commune that I would consider joining or creating. I mean, you could hold your own beliefs, but keep them to yourself.

It would also be good if political discussions were only allowed after 8PM, around the campfire.

The commune of today would be much different than those of the 60's, I think. Much more modern, a mixture of technology and natural living. Self-sufficient energy. Organic foods and a cell-phone to order a pizza. Chemical toilets instead of peeing in a ditch.

You wouldn't have to forgo any of the modern luxuries that you've been accustomed to, unless you chose to. But for it to work, you'd definitely need a mixture of skills, from carpentry and plumbing to nursing and nutrition/cooking.

Please do tell me what profession you are in. I am sure that if people knew about it your career field would be over flown with prospects.

No,I am very much on base when I talk about how difficult it is to find a job that pays enough for someone to be financially independent. Hell, there are forty year olds still living with their parents or relatives because they can't find a job to make ends meet.



[edit on 26-3-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]