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Immediately!

5 (4.7%)

1-2 years

5 (4.7%)

3-5 years

15 (14%)

6-10 years

24 (22.4%)

This is stupid.

39 (36.4%)

Never

19 (17.8%)

Total Members Voted: 107

[LordNagash]

So, where exactly would you two like your life to go? While we're in the business of tearing apart each others ambitions, it only seems fair - I'm pretty sure yours are just as inane and ridiculous, if not more so. And that's perfectly all right, because my opinion on them doesn't matter in the slightest.

It's not the ambition we have a problem with, it's the execution. If that's the kind of life you want to live I say more power to you. I certainly don't think there's only one 'right' way to live, and I'm not interested in the standard life path that people seem to take. I'm not really interested in having a lot of money or things, just enough money to get through life comfortably and be able to afford some things I want.

The thing Retro and I were both pointing out is, this just wouldn't work in practically, not in theory. You can't take 20 people who've never met before, set them up in a community somewhere and expect it to just all work out. The thing with most artists communes and other similar arrangements is that the inhabitants have something in common. And I mean something more substantial than 'they play a game and use the forums for that game.'

In an artists commune you have people who have dedicated their life to making art, who know art, who appreciate art. There's a common purpose and goal, plus a shared experience with how the system works for artists. Having a hobby in common just does not have the same kind of unifying influence that having a 'job' and a life goal in common does.

[Vector]

And yet somehow society works, despite it being billions of people thrown together on one planet in little clusters and expected to get along with each other.

[Aqizzar]

And yet somehow society works, despite it being billions of people thrown together on one planet in little clusters and expected to get along with each other.

One would hope the commune house is a little less rowdy than Planet Earth.  However, I do submit that the members would have substantially more in common than just liking a game and knowing each other from the Internet, by virtue of having the want and wherewithal to move cross-country to live together in the first place.  It's a commitment that weeds out the, well, uncommitted.

[Retro]

Improvement is about me, not where I live. My ultimate goal would be to have enough money saved up from whatever to spend the later half of my life living out of hostels, a year here, a year there... - some people might not like this sort of situation, living with those who start out as strangers. I understand that. But me? It's a dream come true. Especially if, like most situations of this sort, there's a steady flow of new members in and out. It's like I get to move and live with new people every year, without the drawbacks of having to find a new job and actually move stuff. Believe it or not I actually like people and generally get along with them. The only people I've met that I haven't liked are also people who would NEVER consider doing something like this - in essence, it is it's own filter for exactly the sort of people I try to avoid.

I'm not disagreeing with your lifestyle, though. I think that that's a really cool way to want to life your life, despite being rather different from how I and most people choose to. That said, the majority of people seem to be just dropping in and saying the equivalent of "living in a commune with internet people in five years? eh, never thought about it, seems like a good time, why not" - and it seems like a bit of a big deal to treat so casually, and from my point of view, without really giving much thought to the many cons. And as Nagash said, having a game and a small forum in common doesn't seem like nearly enough to me for people to consider enough to seek each other out and live together.

So, where exactly would you two like your life to go? While we're in the business of tearing apart each others ambitions, it only seems fair - I'm pretty sure yours are just as inane and ridiculous, if not more so. And that's perfectly all right, because my opinion on them doesn't matter in the slightest.

"Tearing apart each others ambitions"? That seems a bit overly personal, dunnit? I'm not trying to tell anyone that this is a terrible way to lead your life, I just think that with this group of people, who don't really share any unify factor that would be worth braving all the inevitable social issues that would come up on a daily basis, it doesn't seem like a good idea. And aside from yourself, it doesn't seem to be anybody else's "ambition" so much as an idea that they came across and are vaguely considering.

I don't know why you're interested in what Nagash and I want to do with our lives; it doesn't really seem relevant to discussing this. But since you're curious, I'd be quite satisfied with living with friends, getting a job I like that can support me and possibly a future family, and eventually settling down with my significant other.

Also, Retro... how old are you, if you don't mind me asking?

I don't mind, but again, I don't see how it's relevant to the discussion at hand, so I'll refrain.

And yet somehow society works, despite it being billions of people thrown together on one planet in little clusters and expected to get along with each other.

This sounds a lot to me like "Everything in my commune full of strange internet folk will work out just fine because human society as a whole works out."

However, I do submit that the members would have substantially more in common than just liking a game and knowing each other from the Internet, by virtue of having the want and wherewithal to move cross-country to live together in the first place.  It's a commitment that weeds out the, well, uncommitted.

I agree with this, actually, and hadn't considered it much - but that said, the majority of the thread so far consists of people popping in, kind of shrugging, and saying 'sure.' That doesn't strike me as having the wherewithal spirit which I agree would itself be enough to make a commune of strangers work; it sounds like people idly finding an idea neat without really being the right personality type to go through with it.

[RedWarrior0]

If we're comparing our commune to countries, dibs on Venezuela.

[Vector]

And yet somehow society works, despite it being billions of people thrown together on one planet in little clusters and expected to get along with each other.

This sounds a lot to me like "Everything in my commune full of strange internet folk will work out just fine because human society as a whole works out."

My meaning was more "in general, we manage to get along with a wide range of disparate people every day, so I'm not as worried about this as you seem to be."  I've dealt with weird roommates before.  I'm not exactly scared of them.  I'm even less scared of weird roommates because I'm talking about this as a 3-month endeavor (for myself), which isn't long at all.

I'm guessing that as long as I have my own room and the rest of the complex isn't populated solely by a. physicists or b. CS people, I'll probably be fine.

[Zangi]

Quite a bit of legal stuff to wade through also.  What with shareholding, responsibility for collecting rent and paying bills like insurance, tax and utilities.

Also some sort of agreement/understanding from residents on how/who/whatever in not attracting roaches.

Basically logistics in dealing with upkeep and bull from less then stellar residents is a very important thing.

Of course there will be logistical issues, but hopefully they can be worked out. I'm basically seeing myself possibly becoming a full time semi-landlord if this gets off the ground, at least for a while, just because how much organizational stuff would need to be done. It's also why I'd love it if you were to show up - From what I've seen of you, you have a great head for organizing.

And Merchant Of Menace, sure, sounds good to me. It would probably be easier and have less legal issues if you just don't tell them where it is, though.

Eh, tied down.  Either way, I'm interested, especially if this gets some traction...
Pet project... curiosity... what have you.

@Retro: Its because its only in the idea stage now. 
You know how people have ideas for video games?  This is like that.  If you can't/won't do something to make it happen, it'll get nowhere.  Needs groundwork.
One thing it could be used for? Off-campus housing for college students.

[LordNagash]

And yet somehow society works, despite it being billions of people thrown together on one planet in little clusters and expected to get along with each other.

That's not really relevant to the discussion. You don't have to live with the entirely of human society, you don't have to find their disgusting leftover food sitting on plates in the sink in your kitchen, you don't have to listen to them complain because they don't like what someone else cooked, you don't have to put up with their annoying personal habits and their frequent loud opinions you may not agree with, or any of the thousand other things that could make people incompatible in a living arrangement. But I'll look at your later clarification:

My meaning was more "in general, we manage to get along with a wide range of disparate people every day, so I'm not as worried about this as you seem to be."  I've dealt with weird roommates before.  I'm not exactly scared of them.  I'm even less scared of weird roommates because I'm talking about this as a 3-month endeavor (for myself), which isn't long at all.

Yeah, that's still not what I'm talking about. Getting along with someone in a social or work environment is nothing like living with them. And as for your experiences with weird roommates, it's not 'being scared of them', it's having to put up with them day after day forever because you're committed to living in this compound that you outlaid a lot of money on.

[Vector]

Yeah, that's still not what I'm talking about. Getting along with someone in a social or work environment is nothing like living with them. And as for your experiences with weird roommates, it's not 'being scared of them', it's having to put up with them day after day forever because you're committed to living in this compound that you outlaid a lot of money on.

*shrug*

What can I say, man?  Sometimes one just has to experiment to see what happens.  For me, getting along with someone in a social or work environment is harder than living with them (provided that we're in different rooms) because of forced interactions.  I spend a lot of time locked in my room.  If I can get healthy food and computer repair in exchange for math lessons, conflict mediation, gardening, or book-balancing, I'm happy camper.  Hell, I'd just take the computer repair, because I like cooking and find computers confusing.

But you're entitled to your opinions.

[LordNagash]

Yeah, that's still not what I'm talking about. Getting along with someone in a social or work environment is nothing like living with them. And as for your experiences with weird roommates, it's not 'being scared of them', it's having to put up with them day after day forever because you're committed to living in this compound that you outlaid a lot of money on.

*shrug*

What can I say, man?  Sometimes one just has to experiment to see what happens.  For me, getting along with someone in a social or work environment is harder than living with them (provided that we're in different rooms) because of forced interactions.  I spend a lot of time locked in my room.  If I can get healthy food and computer repair in exchange for math lessons, conflict mediation, gardening, or book-balancing, I'm happy camper.  Hell, I'd just take the computer repair, because I like cooking and find computers confusing.

But you're entitled to your opinions.

And in this setup you'd have forced interactions all the time, because from what has been said in the thread bathrooms and kitchen facilities would be communal and if you've got 4 people to a bathroom pretty good chance there's going to be someone else there as you go in or out, not to mention every time you want to eat or drink there's likely to be someone either in the kitchen to get something or just hanging around there.

Living in a commune is the worst place for someone who hates forced interaction

[Heron TSG]

On top of that, good lord, if you're going to live with a bunch of people you don't know, the odds of you all getting along well are very, very low. Most people try not to live with unknowns, because the potential for a terrible housemate with terrible social skills that doesn't respect your space and leaves stuff out and makes messes and uses your stuff etc. etc. etc. is huge - and especially huge if said unknown people spend a lot of time on forums getting their most meaningful social interaction from there instead of the real world.

The only way I'll be doing this is if I go to Seattle for college, and at that point I'd probably need to get a roommate anyway to pay for a place to live. It's not too much of a stretch to assume that the random college students that I'd otherwise be boarding with would be better than these people who I at least sort of know.

@Nagash - Four people to a bathroom is less that the average family, so I doubt that that would be much of a problem. Six to twenty people per bathroom would definitely be an issue though.

[Footkerchief]

Honestly, the fact that this will inevitably be a sausagefest is enough for me to dismiss it prima facie.  All of my best living situations have been mixed-gender.  My current house is 6 people split 50-50 and holy fuck it's amazing.

[qwertyuiopas]

I have experience living with a large number of different people (family of 7), most of them not understanding the concept of "clean up as you finish with something", either going for the "clean up later" or "rarely clean up" approaches (Well, in the shared areas. My desk is a horrible mess...), so it would be very hard to find something worse. However, due to geographical issues, I doubt I would be able to commit to anything within 5 years, and even then it's doubtful that this would still be going by then and that I would have a reason to participate. plus I couldn't stand the climate, by wikipedia's description of 150 rainy days per year, and winter temperatures that reach a point just barely above freezing, where rain is the worst... cold rain < rain < wet snow < snow

[LordNagash]

Honestly, the fact that this will inevitably be a sausagefest is enough for me to dismiss it prima facie.  All of my best living situations have been mixed-gender.  My current house is 6 people split 50-50 and holy fuck it's amazing.

Are you somehow suggesting a large amount of women wouldn't want to move into a commune with strangers from the internet?

[GlyphGryph]

Sausage-fest? Let's look at who will be living here.

For the committed, I'll be married at that point, and the SO has agreed to come. So that's equal gender.
Vector has said she'd come for a while if it happened (female).
Considering thats the closet things approaching commitments that have been stated so far, I think it's quite an assumption.
I don't even know the gender of most of the other people involved. I think its a bit presumptuous to automatically assume it would be a sausage-fest, especially since there's guaranteed to be at least one woman if it happens at all.

Retro, to Aqizzers comment

I agree with this, actually, and hadn't considered it much

This is pretty much what I said earlier as well.

I only asked your age, because most of the people who make the cult-commune connection seem to be a few years older than me at least, and I was wondering if the trend was continuing to hold true.

LordNagash,
I've actually got to second Vector's "getting along with people you work with is harder than living with them" statement. I mean, I generally get along really well with the people I work with, but there's definitely a lot more stress there than living with people. I grew up in a pretty crazy house though (at one point, there 8 people living in 3 bedroom for quite a while), and my university was 3-4 people to a room for 3 years (welcome to the freshman and sophomore and whatever year I was in when I went to NZ dorms), so learning to live with people really isn't that hard for me. Note that I actually enjoyed all those those living situations as well, especially the dorms, because of the real sense of community that got built up, not just for those in the room but rather the entire block. In fact, that was probably my favorite social living arrangement I've ever been in - while I like having my own space to withdraw to, knowing there's always going on right next door and everyone is invited is a really amazing feeling. And I'm sure I had a lot less in common with those people than the people I'd be living with here.

All you have to do to live with people is accept them for who they are, and let each other have a little bit of "personal space". It's not really that difficult to do (though I know there are certainly some people who are bad at it, which is why we would have our own rooms).

Retro

But since you're curious, I'd be quite satisfied with living with friends, getting a job I like that can support me and possibly a future family, and eventually settling down with my significant other.

This would be great for you, I'm sure... but it would quickly lead to me getting bored which would soon lead to me feeling trapped, which would spiral into me getting depressed which would eventually lead to something terrible happening. It just... doesn't sound like improvement to me. It sounds like just... turning off. Like stagnation. Like giving up. Obviously, to you it isn't like that at all, and that's cool! But if I don't do this thing (and there's a chance it will fizzle no matter what I do), I'm probably going to do something else you'd consider equally stupid, because the times in my life I've been the happiness are always the times where I've committed myself to something everyone else thought was stupid.

Obviously, you're not just talking to me. There are plenty of people that are lukewarm, clearly, about the idea. But it's still in its early stages - of course people aren't sure what to think. I'm just planting seeds at this point (and I tend not to put all my eggs in one basket, this certainly isn't the only place I'm planting them). And that's why I have the backup plan of basically getting the place and then renting to local college students if the community doesn't work out. Shit, I can do a stint as a landlord. 200,000 for a decent house near campus maybe, at 60k per year... okay, so it would take me 10 years to save up enough to do it myself, assuming I buy it straight up in cash, but that's cool, I'm all over that. If that's what happens, that's what I'll do.

But whoever actually does this? Who follows along on this crazy scheme? Hell, I think it's worth it, the time, the money, just to meet someone like. Cause you're right - a hobby isn't enough to pull people together. But this? This, I think, is.

Edit to add: Err, that is very long and impassioned. Now I feel kind of silly for writing it. I guess it's mostly just - I can understand why you guys wouldn't be interested. But if you really truly think it's such a terrible idea - why are you even in this thread participating? That part I guess I don't really get.