Hello fellow FDR enthusiasts!
I am a long-time listener to the podcast series and reader of Stef's articles, first-time participant in the community. Some of you may have seen me lurking the chat over the past week or so, and to those much thanks for your patience and effort to include me in the discussions occuring.
Before stumbling upon FDR I had been involved in underground news networking and the "alternative" (read: conspiracy theory) media, and more recently was interested in political libertarianism and the Ron Paul magic carpet. These pursuits failed to inspire the kind of passion in me that FDR has; I remember Stef discussing his reaction to the philosophy of Ayn Rand as a young man around my age, and how he was somehow receptive to or very ready for the ideas before the fact--this is how I have felt about the ideas being discussed here at FDR. I am still only in the 300's of the podcasts, listening in order, but what has been covered so far has felt like it just immediately clicked for me.
Of course the job of a passive listener is much easier than the job of someone actively working to apply these methodologies and principles in their own life, and it did not take me but an hour in the chat to see my own personal issues surface in a disruptive manner. As easy as it has felt for me to grasp these concepts on a theoretical basis, I foresee a great deal of struggle ahead of me in defeating my own false self. Thanks to those among you who will choose to persist in curiosity in the face of my unwitting defense mechanisms and demons.