GANAS Intentional Community: Michael Johnson, core member, painting coordinator. Michael Johnson is Quoted verbatim from a video interview on Ubraintv.com About why people are scared to communicate directly
"WE WERE VERY INTERESTED IN FINDING OUT WHY PEOPLE CAN'T TALK TO EACH OTHER, SO THEY CAN SOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS THAT THEY NEED TO SOLVE IN ORDER TO WORK TOGETHER. THEY HAD THESE EXPERIENCES IN WORKPLACES, AND VOLUNTEER PROJECTS, ETC. AND SO THAT WAS WHAT WE DID FOR A VERY LONG TIME WAS TO REALLY TRY TO UNDERSTAND THE FEAR OF TALKING TO EACH OTHER HONESTLY." cf. http://www.ubraintv.com/watch.php?id=740
It seems that one of the problems within the overall situation at Maybrook Lodge and Solidarity Farm (which is under the auspices of Ganas, as an early ally or customer/client of the farm produce) is the difficulty of communication, i.e. talking to each other honestly, without fear of doing so, or any other kind of overwhelming fear. My name is Ahgamen, I will cite several examples: Dominick is not present, he does not reside at Maybrook, which makes it difficult to communicate. I have not communicated with him since the initial agreement phase. I have experienced a variety of secondhand communications, nothing directly; obviously he has also experienced the same, it is mutual. Any communication between Dominick and my family are indirect and secondhand. Therefore, it is lack of communication, possibly obstruction. Is it an instance of fear? Maybe in the obvious meaning and also in an interconnected way, because the persons doing direct communication with Dominick do not want any other persons having communication.
That is a case of compartmentalization and a case of chain of command. That's what it is. That is the hierarchy. That has been a part of the informal agreement. However, only in the ideal scenario, it will suffice. In times of trouble or dispute, it will not suffice at all. Communications need to be opened.
I am sure that Michael Johnson and Ganas community were involved with exploring and figuring out exactly that issue with human interactions. What did they find out? Have no idea about that. I do not know much at all about the findings of Ganas and what is entailed in their "matriarchy" or otherwise core group.
Another example of fear is the manner in which Tanyth and Richard and Permilla try to communicate with Michelle and Ahgamen and their family and Haum and Edmund and Michael etc. They (the Solidarity farm gang of four) became so fear-based that they will not communicate, will not have meetings, will not have it recorded, and will not discuss anything rationally. Their conclusion is to tell anybody else to just go away, just leave, just be gone, shoo, good riddance! Is that communication or the fear of communication?