Create a Community

[John Edward Mercier]

Its funny in a way as natives are very suspicious of 'imports' looking to make changes... but these were in fact trying to maintain our traditional structures.

Heck, my father even remembers the days when a DWI just got you a ride home. Even myself a generation removed remember speeding would just result in a 'flash' of the headlights as a signal to slow down.

[Eli]

Is there a freestater presence in Berlin?  What about littleton?  I saw some great (on first superficial glance) real estate opportunities in both those spots.

[jaqeboy]

Just to show you how mis-perceived some things can be, a local Grafton guy, Neil Kinney, was quoted as saying: "You're not going to come here and shove freedom down our throats!"

I attended that town meeting and it had the highest turnout of any Grafton town meeting, ever! Zack Bass (Larry Pendarvis) certainly has a way of "winning friends and influencing people." I think the Free Town Project Yahoo Group thread might still be online somewhere, though the owner shut it down. Some of the Graftonites joined the list - I just stopped reading the posts because there were too many per day. Zack Bass was thrown out of the Free State Project in a controverted decision by the board.

Interesting times...

[jaqeboy]

Is there a freestater presence in Berlin?  What about littleton?  I saw some great (on first superficial glance) real estate opportunities in both those spots.

Steve Villee lives in Berlin. I don't know about Littleton.

[jaqeboy]

My apologies if this topic has been already discussed.

Could it be a possible reality for a group of folks to create their own self reliant community, free from most of the federal and state regulations, rules etc. I would imagine they would have to pay property tax on the land. If a group purchased a bare track of land (approx 2000 acres) could they form their own "free community" or would this be totally impossible. Has this ever been attempted before anywhere in the USA? Is this too far-fetched of an idea?

Kola

There is the whole "intentional community" movement (as opposed to most towns being "unintentional", eh? or accidental?). It's a good point that you might have a more peaceful community if the people all have some basics in common (a lot of intentional communities are religious-based).

See the Intentional Community DataBase for some interesting community experiments.

As far as being independent of some existing state organization that surrounds you, that's a challenge. There have been numerous small new country projects - see: micronations as a starting point.

[srqrebel]

David (moderator of the Voluntaryism/Anarchism boards) has been wanting to do something like this in the Keene area.  It is probably just a matter of obtaining the funds to purchase the land, and finding enough interested parties.

Caleb spoke of establishing somethng like this, as well, under the umbrella of a church organization.  Unfortunately for us, he has gone in search of greener pastures...

[srqrebel]

A good example is the Amish/Mennonite communities. Although I am not very knowledgeable about all of the specifics, they seem to do quite well with the system they currently have in place.

just some thoughts,
Kola

Sure, if you want to live in the stone age.

Even while living out of the back of my truck in the middle of the New Hampshire winter, I have absolutely no nostalgic desire to return to the primitive Amish lifestyle I grew up in

There is a lot to be learned from the Amish, though, about self-sufficient living.  It is just their extreme avoidance of modern conveniences, and their harshly authoritarian attitude toward each other, that I object to.

[John Edward Mercier]

David (moderator of the Voluntaryism/Anarchism boards) has been wanting to do something like this in the Keene area.  It is probably just a matter of obtaining the funds to purchase the land, and finding enough interested parties.

Caleb spoke of establishing somethng like this, as well, under the umbrella of a church organization.  Unfortunately for us, he has gone in search of greener pastures...

Tax-exempt 'fraternal' organization.

[kola]

A good example is the Amish/Mennonite communities. Although I am not very knowledgeable about all of the specifics, they seem to do quite well with the system they currently have in place.

just some thoughts,
Kola

Sure, if you want to live in the stone age.

Even while living out of the back of my truck in the middle of the New Hampshire winter, I have absolutely no nostalgic desire to return to the primitive Amish lifestyle I grew up in

There is a lot to be learned from the Amish, though, about self-sufficient living.  It is just their extreme avoidance of modern conveniences, and their harshly authoritarian attitude toward each other, that I object to.

I do not think one has to live "primitive" or in the "stone age". Many modern aspects could be implemented and I would think it would be encouraged. And the community doesn't have to abide by the strict amish religion. I just used them as an example and it wasn't meant that a new community follow specifically in their footsteps.

Kola

[Pat McCotter]

There were the Shaker communities. They did not eschew modern conveniences. They just decided celibacy was the way to go.

[Lloyd Danforth]

They definitely did not eschew technology.  They invented a lot of things.  The idea of a circular saw has been attributed to a Shaker woman.  I have often wondered if celibacy wiped them out or, the growing welfare state.  They took in orphans and, I believe, others who needed homes. I can't figure out why they didn't last, or, even grow, particularly during the Depression.

[John Edward Mercier]

I haven't visited Shaker Village (Cantebury), just a few minutes south of here, for many years. But I believe the guide at that time stated there was a change in adoption laws that made acquiring new members impossible.

[Lloyd Danforth]

Well......There ya go!

[Pat McCotter]

LAST OF THE SHAKERS

One of the community's most poignant exhibitions is one dedicated to the Shaker children. Where did they come from, you may wonder, as the Shakers were celibate. The answer is from converts' offspring or from orphanages. These children were given a loving home and an excellent education, including useful skills. When they reached the age of 18, they could choose freely to stay with the Shakers or to go out into the world. Sadly, for the Shakers, a change in US law in the 1960s prohibited further adoption, and there have been no Shaker children at Sabbathday Lake for 40 years.

[Russell Kanning]

What were the reasons for its failure and how come very few people participated?

It hasn't failed.
Because some people are still living in Colorado talking about a free community.