Today at the pool I was talking to an Israeli about Kibbutz life. I told him I liked the communal living, including the sharing of income. It is nice to be in a community that cares more about each other than they do about the money they accumulate. What a refreshing philosophy. The Israeli looked at me funny as I said this.

“A communist? From America?” He said.

Later, we all met in the pink room (a bomb shelter made classroom) to watch a movie on the first established Kibbutz, Degania, which again brought up the question of communal living vs. privatization. The movie told of the conflict this Kibbutz had about whether to remain cooperative or to change their monetary dynamics, embracing privatization. The movie was slanted towards the side of those members wishing to maintain the cooperative nature of the Kibbutz so it is hard to tell if I relate with this group of people because I feel sorry for their situation or because I do actually believe a cooperative Kibbutz leads to a more supportive community.

I am interested in finding out how Lotan deals with this issue. To be cooperative or not, that seems to be the question. Is this discussed during Kibbutz meetings? Are there members of this community that wish they could save their salary to use only on themselves and their own family? While I am sure there are many people here who have thought about this, whether in great detail or just because it is a question that many Kibbutzim have faced, I have to believe that a community of this size must see privatization in a different light. Kibbutz Degania is much bigger than Lotan. Degania has between 300 and 500 members where as Lotan only has 50 members (30 families-total, about 150 people).

Or maybe it is has more to do with the stability aspect of privatization for many of the families. I asked Alex, one of the founders of Lotan and my professor, what he thought about the situation Degania found themselves before they became privatized. He explained that the fewer people you have on a Kibbutz, the harder it is to remain cooperative because it means that the kibbutz brings in less money with which to support its members. In this regard, I wonder if Lotan has ever questioned their cooperative ideology.

It would be a shame if Kibbutz Lotan, or any other Kibbutz that is still working cooperatively for that matter, made the decision to become privatized. Looking around the dining hall at meal times, I see one big family that supports all of its members equally. A child might wander off, but you don’t have to worry, because they will inevitably be picked up by another member of their family, maybe a blood relative, or a neighbor, with no harm done. An elderly couple may no longer be able to work but the community supports them throughout the rest of their lives as though the couple had raised every member. Who would want to give up such an amazing and loving way of life?