Hi everyone, my name is Zakery (Zak). I just joined steemit this evening, and am loving what I see so far. Such high quality content, it's like the best of reddit combined with cryptocurrency! Can't wait to dive in further and see this experiment blossom.
I don't have a logical explanation for why my post's title came to mind, but exploring this site gave me nostalgia for the Daily Paul website, dailypaul.com, circa 2008. I was not a content creator, but an avid visitor of the forum (I was a broke college student who couldn't pay for a premium account). That forum was my escape from the noise of the MSM, and my as-yet-to-be-awoken friends, family, and peers. The Daily Paul had an energy that made it a real thriving community, where I truly had a sense of place, and where I realized I was not the only one with my philosophical (or as my friends might say, "stubborn") views about freedom.
I don't remember the exact moment I took the "red pill," but I know it was sometime in 2008, just in the beginning of college, when I was inspired by Ron Paul's presidential bid. There was probably some mashup Youtube video with Dr. Paul and Peter Schiff talking Austrian economics, or his relentless critique of interventionism, that led me to the Daily Paul, and 8 years later, that small rabbit hole with all its twists and turns has led me to steemit. I have seen a personal evolution from a small "l" liberal, to a constitutionalist, to a libertarian (in the broadest sense), to a minarchist, to now nearly a proponent of voluntaryism. That being said, new information and ideas are always welcomed, and maybe my philosophical evolution will continue or change direction.
I should mention that I don't intend to turn off anyone who does not identify as libertarian, there are other rabbit holes besides libertarianism that are founded in ethics and well-intentioned at the root, but none that I've found without an unnecessarily large role of the state.
Anyway, just felt the desire to shout out to any Daily Paulers out there. Look forward to interacting with this broad community, libertarian or otherwise!