The Coronavirus Thread

[pErvinalia]

That's scot very nice!

[Hermit]

actual communes, none of which lasted for long anyway.

The Farm lasted for over a decade as a pure commune and still exists, promoting many of the ideas of its original residents, some of whom still live there.

OK. I'll change that to "...actual communes, all but one of which lasted for long anyway." Not that The Farm was a particularly left wing commune to begin with. Its original aims, as listed here, looked more like a new age type manifesto, and having been founded by a charismatic leader, referred to as the “abbot of the monastery”, it resembled more a cult than a left wing commune - Jonestown without the Kool Aid.

It could also be argued that The Farm has become the proverbial grandfather's axe, as in "I replaced the handle and my brother replaced the head, but it's still grandfather's axe". That happened with The Changeover in 1985.

All of the businesses in the community (with the exception of The Book Company) became privatized, owned by their principal managers, the people with the skills and knowledge to actually run the business.

At that point the commune morphed into members who were business owners and those who were wage earners. Many of the ideas of its original residents still exist, but insofar as collectivism was one of them, it has considerably atrophied.

[Brian Peacock]

The hippies of the 1960s became the YUPPIES of the 1980s.

[Tero]

[rainbow]

actual communes, none of which lasted for long anyway.

The Farm lasted for over a decade as a pure commune and still exists, promoting many of the ideas of its original residents, some of whom still live there.

I've got a friend who grew up and lives on a communal property. (near Nimbin, which won't surprise the Australians)

Tarquin Fin-tim-lin-bin-whin-bim-lim-bus-stop-F'tang-F'tang-Olé-Biscuitbarrel ?

[NineBerry]

Haha funny.

[L'Emmerdeur]

actual communes, none of which lasted for long anyway.

The Farm lasted for over a decade as a pure commune and still exists, promoting many of the ideas of its original residents, some of whom still live there.

OK. I'll change that to "...actual communes, all but one of which lasted for long anyway." Not that The Farm was a particularly left wing commune to begin with. Its original aims, as listed here, looked more like a new age type manifesto, and having been founded by a charismatic leader, referred to as the “abbot of the monastery”, it resembled more a cult than a left wing commune - Jonestown without the Kool Aid.

It could also be argued that The Farm has become the proverbial grandfather's axe, as in "I replaced the handle and my brother replaced the head, but it's still grandfather's axe". That happened with The Changeover in 1985.

All of the businesses in the community (with the exception of The Book Company) became privatized, owned by their principal managers, the people with the skills and knowledge to actually run the business.

At that point the commune morphed into members who were business owners and those who were wage earners. Many of the ideas of its original residents still exist, but insofar as collectivism was one of them, it has considerably atrophied.

I agree with most of your analysis. As somebody who had an early interest in both libertarianism and communal living, I've followed the saga of The Farm since the early 70s. I thnk its longevity is, while unusual, worth noting. I don't consider Gaskin to be in any way equivalent to Jim Jones, but if you're happy with that smear, so be it.

[Seabass]

[Hermit]

[...] having been founded by a charismatic leader, referred to as the “abbot of the monastery”, it resembled more a cult than a left wing commune - Jonestown without the Kool Aid.

I don't consider Gaskin to be in any way equivalent to Jim Jones, but if you're happy with that smear, so be it.

You're reading too much into my comment. Both Gaskin and Jones were charismatic leaders of communes with cultish characteristics. That is an important equivalence, but the comparison ends right there. This is why I made the point of adding the "Jonestown without the Kool Aid" metaphor.

[macdoc]

No human rights exemptions for Canadians for anti-vax ...

http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/news_centre/oh ... w8wQrVQxGM

[JimC]

An interesting article discussing the comparative risks of becoming infected, and being hospitalised between the vaccinated and the unvaccinated:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/health/2021 ... /100484432

Research shows COVID-19 vaccines remain highly effective at preventing severe disease and death six months after vaccination, including against the highly transmissible Delta variant.

The article goes on to say that being vaccinated also decreases your chances of being infected considerably, and also (to a degree) your ability to pass it on.

[Seabass]

Trump supporters are the reason bottles of bleach need "DO NOT DRINK" warnings on them.

https://twitter.com/AAFANational/status ... 5685303310

[JimC]

They'll ignore such messages - it's a trick by the Deep State!

[pErvinalia]

Who you going to listen to - scientists, or youtube? That's right. Youtube.

[Scot Dutchy]

They'll ignore such messages - it's a trick by the Deep State!

We can only hope.