I'm not sure what the real subject of the draft is. If the subject is the role of the kibbutzim (that's the plural of "kibbutz") in Israeli society, the literature is large. Not only would the reader have benefited from some useful directions, but you might have also found a little reading useful for your own purposes. (The idea of kibbutz dwellers as like Amish, drawn into knowledge of a different world by TV, is risible.) It would be more valuable and insightful, I suspect, to write about the actual fate of the kibbutzim as graphic design collectives in Tel Aviv employing Thai and Romanian farm laborers when Palestinians became unemployable.

I think, however, that this might not actually be an essay about actual kibbutzim, but rather about the possibility of utopian socialism (which at the end, despite all the Zionist speculation, you want us to understand is "not likely" in the US). Why the kibbutz is "real" socialism where Amana isn't, or Shakers weren't, or whether Iowa isn't the US, I'm not sure I understand. As I don't know what to make of the assertion that New Zealand, which did very well at keeping its people from dying during the Covid epidemic, doesn't "prioritize[] individual freedoms." I should think the last twelve weeks in China would have disposed of the whole supposed distinction between "collectivist" success and "individualist" failure as junk sociology.

So what is the central theme to carry forward in the next draft? If you mean to make this about the distinctively Zionist commune structure of the kibbutzim, we need some real history. If the theme is the social importance of experimental egalitarian communes to American socialism, why not write about some? Is there any utility in defining socialism?

The Kibbutz: A Case Study for Successful Socialism

-- By JamesHebish - 16 Feb 2023

Socialism on the Rise in the US.

There is no doubt that socialism is on the rise in the United States. In the classroom, the presumption that socialism is not an effective means of managing a society has been called into question. Today, 18–34-year-olds are almost evenly split between those who view capitalism positively and those who view it negatively (49% vs. 46%). Two years ago, that margin was a gaping 20 points (58% vs. 38%) (Axios). Critics of socialism assert that the shrinking of this margin is tied to a lack of education in prior failed attempts of socialism. Certainly, the destruction caused by socialism in the People’s Republic of China and in the Soviet Union is not to be disregarded lightly.

Successful Socialism: The Kibbutz

But not all attempts have failed. In the early 20th century, early examples of successful agricultural socialist communities cropped in then-Palestine. These communities, called “Kibbutz” (translating to gathering or clustering), embraced socialist values and consisted mostly of eastern European jews seeking refuge from antisemitism. All members of the kibbutz were viewed as equals: children slept in children’s houses, only seeing their parents a few times a day, and women regarded their husbands as “my man” rather than the customary “my master”. Perhaps most importantly, the Kibbutz did not embrace private property. Rather, they embraced a communal conceptualization of land that was based on the amalgam of community effort invested in it agriculturally. As Austrian psychologist, Bruno Bettelheim, put it, “nowhere more than in the kibbutz did I realize the degree to which private property, in the deep layers of the mind, relates to private emotions. If one is absent, the other tends to be absent as well".

Threats to the Kibbutz

In the 1950’s other groups of Jews from countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, and Iraqi joined the community and with their arrival came ideological and cultural disagreement. By this time, the newly formed state of Israel had aligned itself with the United States and other Western countries. Differing beliefs on who Israel should align with led to the segregation of many Kibbutzniks, whose way of life was very much based on socialist principles at odds with a Western alignment.

Ultimately, Kibbutz that failed to maintain a uniform makeup of Eastern European Jews experienced a declining sense of common identity among members of their community. Exacerbating this conflict, the introduction of the TV exposed members of the Kibbutz to societies where individuals were compensated for their work directly and maintained agency to do with their money as they saw fit. This glimpse into an alternative society combined with the decreasing ability of members to identify with their countryman marked a significant transition for the Kibbutz: Kibbutzniks began to prioritize the individual over the community. The common culture and values that previously served as a sort of communal glue (or trust) began to weaken, and so did the Kibbutz. Although many Kibbutz still survive today, it is worth noting that the ones that have are primarily made up of Eastern European Jews.

Lessons for the United States

If the Kibbutz is to be used as a case study for Socialism, it does not bode well for a full application of it in the United States. Not only does the US lack a uniform population, it goes beyond by embraces differences. Deeply embedded in our constitution and society is the belief that one has right to follow the values and beliefs of their choice so long as they don’t infringe on the safety of others. In other words, we value individual freedom, bur arguably not communal freedom, which would perhaps encompass a basic standard of living and wage for each member of society. The streets of Skid Row tell a different story.

Furthermore, the current framework of social media poses a much bigger risk to the successful application of Socialism in the US than the Television did to the Kibbutz. Not only does it expose lavish lifestyles of other individuals, it goes so far as to tailor that very exposure to what the user would want most. This serves as a constant addicting temptation to prioritize one’s self over the group.

Covid-19 proved an opportune moment for countries that embraced communal good to shine and countries that prioritized individual freedoms to fail. Countries with uniform populations were quick to abide by mask mandates and receive the vaccine when it became available. Even if one was young and healthy, it made sense to vaccinate in order to eliminate the risk of harm to elderly countryman–– so long as you could sufficiently identify yourself with those countryman. Meanwhile in Los Angeles, a fight over masks led to gunfire outside a Los Angeles store and a rapper named Jerry Lewis was killed. It is not difficult to see that Americans have a difficult time with even the most minor of inconveniences when they come at the expense of their individuality.

Would it work? Maybe.

Although there are certainly elements of socialism that have been and can be integrated into capitalism to make its effects less harsh, the conditions of the United States do not seem likely to successfully host a full-fledged attempt at socialism. This analysis herein is tamed not just by its depth, but also by the fact that there are other pre-conditions to socialism not explored in this paper. Still, perhaps increased enthusiasm towards socialism will lead to adaptation where it is possible and approach some happy medium. In future research, It could prove meaningful to explore whether individualism or difference came first in the US. After all, the colonists had a lot in common.

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