Page 12 - C.A.L.L. #37 - Winter 2013/2014

definitions, and then challenges Pitzer's ideas of developmental communalism and his
book on America’s Communal Utopias.

He then spends pages trying to define ‘Intentional community”, with a bottom line as
obvious as putting “may contain nuts” on a packet of dry roasted peanuts, namely that we

can’t treat all intentional communities the same and definitions need different
classifications.

On the other hand, the latter section on intentional communities and utopianism is rather

interesting.

The following article is by Graham Meltzer, and this really gets me into the book, is a

refreshing piece about how community can be the answer to an increased alienated,
individualistic and consumerist society. As well as the requisite quoting of other
contributors to this book (in this case mssrs Metcalf and Miller), he repeatedly quotes
Eric Fromm, who I'm personally particularly fond of.

He goes on to talk about co-housing as the answer to life, the universe and everything,
(he published a book on the subject back in 2005), and then goes on to describe the role

of eco-communalism, of which cohousing is a subset, as a theory for sustainable urban
communities, which he states, ever so matter-of-factly, has the potential to stave off
the impending apocalypse.

Yiftach Goldman takes his opportunity to have a dig at Etzioni
by making it clear that he is using the term communitarian in a
different way than Etzioni (As if to say, ‘I can use this word

how I like’). He goes on to disparage Etzioni’s examples of
communities as ‘doubtful’.

This paper attempts to reconcile Socialism and Communalism,
which have not always been the coziest of bedfellows.

“Capitalism is a clear and present danger to the welfare of the
Amitai Etzioni opens the
book and subsequently takes inhabitants of the world and to their happiness” says Goldman,
a pounding from his fellow taking a leaf out of Meltzer's book. In fact, if this wasn’t a
scholars across the pages bold enough statement in itself, the next sentence reads: It is
that follow
a “threat to the mere survival of humanity”. Nice!

Having said all that, Goldman talks about communal socialism, which is how I’d label the
way in which I live my life today – what’s there not to like about this article?!

Part two of the book opens with The Godfather of communal studies, Yaakov Oved, who
gives his historical perspective on communes, much of which can be found in his last book

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