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The Amish/Mennonites have an interesting take... Some of them are 'allowed' to drive cars, as long as they're black base models and are "modest" and largely uti

The Amish/Mennonites have an interesting take... Some of them are 'allowed' to drive cars, as long as they're black base models and are "modest" and largely utilitarian. There are also rules about which types of equipment they can have, so no tractors but they can have skid steer loaders for "construction" which they hitch regular farm implements to. No electricity allowed in the house, but no real restrictions about power in the "shop" or battery powered devices. It's a strange combination between modesty and strategically bending rules. I kind of adore that.

derg 5y ago
> It's a strange combination between modesty and strategically bending rules. I kind of adore that. It's very earnestly human. Being rigid is fine and all but it also kind of sucks a hell of a lot. So it turns into a "how can I make this suck a little less without breaking what I believe in too much?" which is something I think we all struggle with but it's really laid bare here with the contrast between their lifestyle and ours.
ska 5y ago
> The Amish/Mennonites have an interesting take... Anabaptist communities vary far more than you suggest. It's a bit like Judaism that way; sure some are identifiable by particular dress etc. but there others you wouldn't notice at all in the SUV beside you on the highway.
jandrese 5y ago
The politics involved in the community are fascinating. They have local committees that decide the rules for a community, anywhere from a neighborhood to a small town. But those local committees also coordinate at a higher regional level to set overall policy, and the various regions also coordinate at the top level. This means a decision made at the top level, like "no electricity in the home" gets filtered down through the communities with different interpretations of the rules. A particularly strict community might ban all automation in the home, while another will ban power lines but allow battery operated tools, while another will ban all electricity but allow air tools causing people to develop air powered hand mixers and refrigerators. You see a lot of clever workarounds for arbitrary rules in the Amish community. It is very common to see rules bent or broken when necessary for a job, like a farmer being allowed to burn gasoline/diesel to run farm equipment even when his local community bans using it for anything else. Some of the furniture makers have rather sophisticated workshops (although nothing CNC) which allow them to make the furniture efficiently enough to sell it for a very low price.

derg 5y ago

> It's a strange combination between modesty and strategically bending rules. I kind of adore that. It's very earnestly human. Being rigid is fine and all but it also kind of sucks a hell of a lot. So it turns into a "how can I make this suck a little less without breaking what I believe in too much?" which is something I think we all struggle with but it's really laid bare here with the contrast between their lifestyle and ours.

ska 5y ago

> The Amish/Mennonites have an interesting take... Anabaptist communities vary far more than you suggest. It's a bit like Judaism that way; sure some are identifiable by particular dress etc. but there others you wouldn't notice at all in the SUV beside you on the highway.

jandrese 5y ago

The politics involved in the community are fascinating. They have local committees that decide the rules for a community, anywhere from a neighborhood to a small town. But those local committees also coordinate at a higher regional level to set overall policy, and the various regions also coordinate at the top level. This means a decision made at the top level, like "no electricity in the home" gets filtered down through the communities with different interpretations of the rules. A particularly strict community might ban all automation in the home, while another will ban power lines but allow battery operated tools, while another will ban all electricity but allow air tools causing people to develop air powered hand mixers and refrigerators. You see a lot of clever workarounds for arbitrary rules in the Amish community. It is very common to see rules bent or broken when necessary for a job, like a farmer being allowed to burn gasoline/diesel to run farm equipment even when his local community bans using it for anything else. Some of the furniture makers have rather sophisticated workshops (although nothing CNC) which allow them to make the furniture efficiently enough to sell it for a very low price.