The following article appeared in the April 1996 edition and reflects rising concerns over the co-operative movement's future in an increasingly hostile environment.

"The dire predictions made in January's newsletter are coming true, and things are starting to heat up at Beaver Creek! For the first time in our 12-year history, we have a Co-op Defense Committee!

As outlined in *** **** and *** **** articles in this issue, the recent federal budget and its proposed phasing out of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's responsibilities for co-ops like us, means we all going to have to fight together to save what we cherish.

Nothing concentrates the mind Like a threat to our existence. In this light, we see the politics of exclusion, as practiced in this province and across the continent, in all its ugliness. "Democratic" initiatives with euphemistic titles like "privatization," and "deficit reduction," polarize society and shatter the middle class.

They say it is "realistic" in the new global, unfettered, free-market economy where "productivity" is the universal mantra. We have to make structural adjustments, they say, to be competitive. This translates into an attempt to completely "corporatize" private life. One aspect of this is the view of housing as a product we invest in. Such housing becomes a commodity in a speculative, market-driven culture.

An example of this is developing just down the road from us. Billing themselves as "close to nature," this former corn field will soon sprout "executive two-storey" status symbols designed by prestigious builders. The resulting neighborhood will house families and stimulate tax revenue, but will it be a community?

One paper I help produce at work is a well-known real estate weekly. Over the past few years I have typed many thousands of ads for housing. I can assure you the primary selling points for real estate agents are if it is a "desirable neighborhood" (read upper middle class), how many "features" it contains (read marketable items to increase resale value), and how good an "investment" it is.

When you next scan a real estate page look for a very revealing phrase, "Power Of Sale." What does it mean? The bank has foreclosed a mortgage, taken over a house and is now trying to sell it. What it really means is someone played the competitive market and lost. Now the spoils are available at a discount.

The potential buyer will be told along with the gas fireplaces, wet bars, whirlpool and steam baths, the home is in a "quiet neighbor- hood," where you will have "friendly neighbors." Unfortunately these "features" are linked to property values. This means your well-heeled fellow investors won't take kindly to you painting your front door red, turning your front lawn into a pesticide-free nature preserve, or (horrors) putting up a clothes line!

Of course, these homeowners, their children and pets will still make friends and develop relationships in such a context. Where we differ is the underlying dynamic binding them together. With the "close to nature" crowd, there will be a clear understanding of the individual assets sunk into each home. As a group, there will be a profound awareness of the importance of guarding the value of their "exclusive" investment.

This will translate into a social landscape quite different from ours. I have seen breathtakingly beauful homes, but I seldom see very many residents on their front yards. We have occasion to live for short periods of time in such a neighborhood. The silence at times is deafening. We have yet to ever see the happy carnival atmosphere we often enjoy on a sunny summer afternoon or early evening.

Many of you will remember when *** **** was born in the co-op. Groups of members were excitedly standing around anticipating the news. Then the announcement came, there was a happy shout all along our street. Within an hour we were all filing through to say hello to our newest addition to the co-op family. This scene has been played out in every small community in Asia, Africa, and South America since before recorded history, but it seldom happens in the suburbs of modern Europe or North America.

Beaver Creek Housing Co-op, as a non-profit community, is the complete opposite of commodity housing. We have come together because we believe in inclusivity and universality. No matter what our background and economic circumstance, we are equal voting members. Our highest goal is co-operation and from this shared philosophy, we move away from a "corporatized" valuation of life and relationships. Our internal social dynamic is based on collective commitment.

With our committee work, garden plots and shared work activities, we free ourselves from seeing goods and services as merely products to be bought and sold in the market. W are learning to supply our own needs by reclaiming lost skills and rediscovering the value of exchanging and bartering.

Our "home" is the entire co-op. It is not merchandise we invest in, but a community we live in. Such realities are the antithesis of commodity housing, and therefore a threat to the entire idea system they represent.

In the new mean-spirited times, alternatives are luxuries to deny. Those presenting a different vision are "special interest groups," to be marginalized. Anyone daring to contradict the language of exclusion is condemned as "politically correct," and silenced. This is the politics of dismissal and isolation. We must be true to our values of inclusivity and community and fight to save what we cherish."

Note: Since this article came out, co-operatives joined together and have won many battles to continue to exist. While the war isn't over, our prospects have greatly improved.