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Are They the Answer to a Messed Up World? I'm a baby boomer, one brought up on the idea that if something was wrong, you organized to correct the injustice. We tried to pass this habit on to the younger generations who followed us. Somewhere along the journey of life, I noticed that social change was taking second, third or tenth place to social escape. In many ways I don't blame folks, both the young and their seniors. It's true that in recent years it has seemed that for every step forward, we find ourselves taking four steps backward. At that rate, we can't see progress, and that is darn right frustrating. For example: In a city near mine a number of friends were doing all the right stuff to save some beautiful and ancient beech trees on Tennessee Valley Authority property. The protectors of the trees were assured that a potential developer who wanted to purchase the land from TVA would save the trees. He was a better potential developer than a drug store which up front said their new store would require destruction of the trees. Nevertheless, at about midnight on a weekend the developer whom the citizens trusted and who won permission to develop the new piece of property, came in and quickly and as quietly as possible cut down the beeches that dated back to Christopher Columbus's time. All the work, all the meetings, all the emails and hearings....they all amounted to nothing. The activists were duped. I wonder how many people lost faith in the system because of this coup d'etat. So it's no wonder that many of our children today are just signing out completely....not voting, not starting petition drives, not demonstrating or even doing civil disobedience. No, they are organizing together, in many instances, into communities. Such an alternative style of life is very enticing and often serves a good purpose. Members of egalitarian communities own very little; they essentially leave the capitalistic system and live communally....equal housing, equal work, equal stipends, decisions by consensus, organic locally raised food, clean water and air. In many ways, these communities are models for how life should be lived. And there are thousands of such communities that fit this description in one way or another all over the world. Sometimes I myself feel like just throwing in the towel and removing myself from the system. When we play by the rules, we simply are used by the system in the process. We try to reach our goals and objectives by modeling ourselves like the corrupted system we are fighting. "Why?" many ask. Because I hear of strategies that do work, of political leaders who do care and need us to keep bugging them, of some successes and I move forward in hope. I don't know if we will ever be able to persuade those who have tuned out of today's system of corporate control in favor of this new type of tribalism. But regardless, I for one, don't think I can leave the fight. If more and more of us leave the world in favor of the survivalist community, is that not just giving full rein to those who govern the world to grasp more and more power, money and influence? And while we are creating an alternative lifestyle, their job gets easier and easier. I would like to think that we could convince those who are doing the planet no favors to come on along and live in simplicity communes. But that's not going to happen. Our best opportunity would be to convince the next generation beyond the planet rippers to forsake that lifestyle and adopt a communal mode of living instead. But we can't wait for the next generation. Today I tell folks living simple egalitarian lifestyles in intentional communities to leave their peaceful confines and spread the gospel of "another way" in the halls of Congress, at city and county commission meetings. Members must show their solidarity with humans in the rat race, too. One good example of an intentional community that left the rat race but not the world is the Farm in Summer-town, TN. Started in the early 70's by a "family" of hippies, this community today still is alive and well. But in its 30-plus years of operation, members have gone out into the world to help the suffering, have provided training for the re-birth of midwifery, have created a watershed protector of their local river and have introduced kids in the cities to life on the farm. This community speaks out against illegal wars and other injustices. They have incorporated the Internet and other new forms of communication to get their messages out to the world. As a matter of fact, residents of the Farm are often leaders in the world fighting the Powerful. For more information about the myriads of communities out there that are starting up on a constant basis, go to www.ic.org. Also check out The Farm at www.thefarm.org. I really think we can take the best of intentional communities and the lives of the urban thorns in the flesh and bring about real change. We can feed on what makes the other tick. We in urban areas can take a break from street organizing with a few nights under the quiet starry nights and organic food feasts. The folks in isolated rural communities can take a break from the quiet sameness of life and experience the daily stimulus of beating the system. Together we'll eventually make a better world one community, one city at a time. But we can't wait! The powers we must defeat sure aren't waiting for us to get our act together.
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