>One candidate is Stephen Gaskin, founder of a famous Tennessee commune,
The Farm. His 10-point platform sometimes sounds like it could have been
drafted by Ross Perot, if Ross were in the habit of swallowing mushrooms
rather than looking like one: One plank, for instance, says we should
"fix" the veterans benefit system, without elaborating as to why and how
it can be repaired. Gaskin also endorses the Equal Rights Amendment
(while ignoring the pressing matters of Seabrook, OPEC, and Patty
Hearst), and says we should establish Universal Health Care and "argue
about the money later." (If President Gaskin decides to send men to
Mars, he'll probably decide to argue about the technology later.)<
An interesting development, I'm afraid, that shows just how far from
reality the Green Party resides. I'm just doing some interviews with people
from the farm and one thing that strikes me is the huge contrast from Black
Bear and the digger communes in Northern California who accepted no gurus,
allowed no other person to tell them what to do, and would not have become
followers to anyone. In order to live at the Farm, one had to "accept"
Steve Gaskin as one's "spiritual teacher." Steven and his "clique" as I've
heard it described, determined what the community would do and if you
didn't "follow" Stephen, you were frozen out. And don't forget Stephen's
wife, Ina Mae (sp?), who has become a midwife guru when the prevaling
attitudes at the Farm was for women to obey the men and stay pregnant. Most
women had four to five babies, I've been told.
During the heyday of the Farm, my understanding, from the interviews I've
had, is that Steven "ruled the roost." A self styled "guru," it appears
they had an outreach program that sent people to other countries to help
them work collectively to solve community programs such as economics,
water, build houses etc.
But you're getting this third hand from me as I've recorded people's
stories at the Farm. I'd be interested to hear more from anyone who lived
there.
(Separate personal messages to me if you're in Northern California and are
available to be interviewed -- subject communes from the 60s, what people
learned, how the commune informed who they are today and what they took
from the experience, personal stories).
best, Don Monkerud
Don Monkerud
http://www.bearbytes.com/news.htm (PDF download)
Black Bear Mining & Publishing Company
2220 Pleasant Valley Road
Aptos, CA 95003
831-724-2059
FAX 831-724-1893
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