there is an increased interest in cooperative living (condos, ccops, community associations) in the US, but also increased conflict between residents and coop/condo boards. This ceratinly is concistent with my experience.
What I would like to know is if non-US people have similar experiences. I understand housing coops are very popular in Canada, the UK, Israel, Scandinavian countries etc.
My hypothesis is that while conflicts are inherent in cooperative living, it is not the conflict but conflict resolution that makes the difference. I think (but I may be wrong) that US-sers tend to have less develepod conflict resultion and negotiation skills than other nations. Life here seems to operate in two basic modes with little in between: either superficial niceities, small talk and general non-involvement or going balistic if somebody steps on someone else's toes (legal battles, road rages, feuds, etc.)
Unlike the US-sers, other nations tend to rely more on informal interpresonal interaction (the talking things over beer or vodka) and negotiations rather than formal procedures an outright aggression - or so it seems. By comparision, US is pobably one of the most heavily regulated society on the face of the Earth - with a formal rule over every aspect of everyday life and an army of policement, security officers, lawyers and arbitration bodies ready to enforce these rule and arbitrate disputes. It seem that US-sers cannot solve interpersonal problems amongst themesleves without relying on a formal authority. This is manifested not just in cooperative living, but most aspect sof everyday life.
I would be intersted in other people's opinions on this subject, especially those from outside the US.
PS. Happy winter holiday day to everyone. The way I see it is like most people see Halloween - an opportunity to get together and celebrate and tell ghost stories nobody takes seriously. Most peoples on earth celebrate the new year or winter solstice in one form or another - it seems like a universal holiday for the humankind. So it is a good opportunity to celebrate all those traditions - put up a xmas tree, light up a menorah, get together, tell the ghostly stories different culture invented but treat them with a grain of salt, as most people treat Halloween ghostly tales, and then celebrate together, and be merry. It is not only healthy human relations but also the best way of stopping fundie fanatics.
Wojtek
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