Hey, I am 17, living in London doing A levels at the moment. My goal is to create an urban commune in celebration of urban life and urban living (unlike most of the commune plans on here, detatching myself and the communal project from all environmentalist agendas) The individuals in the commune contribute all wages to the commune and live communally in a social community which, with time and growth should become an effective and practical unit of political organisation as well. Sufficiency would thus not come from working the land, but from a wage communal living is thus - far from an expression of surrender to nature (as with eco-based communal projects) - a declaration of human's rise above nature and the naturalised predisposition to individualism. From demonstration of this, I believe generating active communist communities can gain more ground, providing for its opponents proof of a flexible and cooperative human nature, and for its supporters, as close a synthesis between capitalism and the communist end-point that can be acheived within the framework of capitalism. If anyone has any interest in this idea, i would love to hear it. If you have criticism of it - the plan, not my anti-environmentalism - I would also love to hear it too.
I think it's important that all members of a commune go into participation with full knowledge that the group can evict them at any time if the consensus is that the member is too depleting group energy. Something like that 13 year-old autistic boy who was banned from church for being disruptive.
its not reasonable for people to contribute all wage to any kind of arrangement, afterall they are the ones going out to work they are entitled to use the money how they think fit. some of the money would be used for the upkeep of the commune but no more. i think what you are looking for is co operation not communism, try not to use the political language it will lead you into a dark hole. wanting to co operate with people is one thing, being a communist is another - communism doesn't work. stay away from the "manifesto" (a piece of peper used to beat down anyone with a stick who dare question the "tribal leaders" of the commune). try and seek others like yourself in britain.
Perhaps some people don't need written constitutions, and rely more on psychic energies to repel or attract. (edited) Written words do seem to have psychic effects tho.
Your presumption that communism doesn't work is unfounded. You have no grounds to dismiss it as a commune of the type I want has not been created (although several Urban Kibbutzim in Israel exist, none in the name of cooperative political ideals). Creating this commune is the expression of the practical and moral superiority of communism through practising, as best I can, what I preach. The broader change I wish to make is the transformation of a lack of confidence (without economic alternative) in popular politics into one of optimism and a reinvigoration of the communist lobby through demonstrating the achievement of absolute equality. And secondly, why avoid political language when the community I am trying to create stands on a shared overt political ethos and a show of proof for communism's worth. Thirdly, In such a commune, putting all your wage in the pot is key as in my opinion as it provides the sense of absolute reliance on each other. It also seeks to provide equality within the habitants: they are all equal in giving everything and absolute in their decision to do so. Fourthly, any ideas where I should look for like-minded people?
Emma Goldmans Finishing Schools in Seattle WA has an interesting model you should look into. All the people that live there have to work the same amount, be it in the house or outside in a job. All work is treated equally valuable, including housework. They have an spreadsheet that takes each members wage, and determines how many hours members need to work inside and outside the house. Then, over the amount the house needs to meet all the food, shelter and medical needs of it's members, people can make personal money at their jobs, up to a cap. After a certain amount of personal income, any additional money earned must be put into their growth fund. This allows people to work harder to have more things but not make so much more money as to crate a wide disparity between the haves and have-nots. Everyone is close to being on equal economic standings. The growth fund saves money and will one day start another community like themselves. Anyhow, food for thought for you.
If a subversive element, based on greed perhaps, rises and evicts you in a democratic process, then why bother forming or joining a commune at all?
I stumped myself. I had to go back and consider the eviction of the 13 year-old as an act of greed. I'm mind boggled. I'm still of the opinion that the eviction in that instance is valid...I'm pretty sure the church members would understand whenever they re-incarnate as unruly autistics.
the kibbutz isn't communism it has left leaning ideologies and people are more or less left to themselves without being forced to hand over all monies etc. the one i went on was great, i worked and spent a lot of time sleeping. you won't be able to persuade anyone in their right mind to contribute all their wages and wealth into the hands of an entity such as a commune, a bank perhaps but certainly not a commune. it sounds negative but its better to get it out in the beginning. you will find that some people won't want to work that much if everything they work for gets taken from them, humans work principally for themselves. you're from britain aren't you?? you'll probably need to have to travel around to find the people you're looking for. trying existing communes / groups would probably be a start. my perfect lifestyle would be a kibbutz lifestyle, kibbutzniks are free to live in their own homes and have all the trappings of modern life, the difference is that they are not as vulnerable to being hammered by the government, unless they want to be. the situation is britain is grim i think it will be hard to find people who want to live in a decent way, their children educated, living well and going on holidays, having plenty of hot water and being warm in winter etc. the average brit thinks he's going to make it and there's not much you can do to change that. (one thing you might look into is actually volunteering to go and work on the kibbutz. if you arrive on one and they work you to death then get transferred to another kibbutz. try and not get brainwashed whilst you are over there, the kibbutzniks don't push any political line (STAY AWAY FROM THE RELIGIOUS KIBBUTZ they are out there). once you are in the kibbutz - stay in the kibbutz , don't be tempted to live outside as you will find yourself screwed everyway but loose. use the kibbutz as a base and stay in the kibbutz system. there are other "volunteer" bases in israel but they are more or less slave estates and you will find yourself being treated very shabbily. when i was last there israel was importing many foreign guest workers from thailand to do their work and so you might find it hard to get that kind of work anyway. in its essence the kibbutz was visionary nowadays the system is collapsing, and it may well be that volunteering isn't possible anymore, the kibbutz should give you an idea of how a system of cooperation works). if you are looking for like minded people you've found one place where they might be found but to be truthful most folks here have some vision of living the lifestyle of early man rather than embracing the best of the modern world. i remember there being a commune pembroke way in south wales.
I completely take your point on the political ideology of kibbutzim, although some russian-wave immigrants have tried to steer kibbutzim towards absolute communism and some have succeeded, although with a self-sufficient agricultural not urban basis. However, with the collapse of the kibbutzim movement you mention and the current lack of confidence of - and privatisation of - zionism they are all gone now. Next year I am living in Israel and will definitely be checking out kibbutzim while I am out there. There are some interesting urban kibbutz's in Tel Aviv that I will be checking out. I know people in Kibbutz Ketora and have been told about how their system of cooperation works. Wages might become a thing of pragmatic flexibility in the beginning at least. I want to make this commune to facilitate political means. A system to repatriate wealth to those who decide to leave the commune is key in this, if they want to leave, that option should always be there to reinforce the sense that everyone who has chosen to live equally choses to stay again and again when they wake up every morning. If this commune is to work. It must have equal modernity with wider society, if not more. I hear what you say about living like 'early man', and I share it wholeheartedly, my problem is not with materialism but with the idea that greed is natural and that there is no alternative to the current way of living. Those in the commune should have consumer goods and holidays and most importantly support in the way they chose to reach self-realisation.
Your idea probably already occurs on the macroscopic perspective, with all income returning to the source, and the source taking care of all needs.
that is very vague l00l. what is the source? macroscopic means the very large view, macro means large scope means view, as opposed to microscopic. unsure of what scale l00l is thinking of, nationally perhaps?
