I am Jimmy Wood,

and as you could tell from introduction 1/2 ( https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@jwood27/my-new-voluntaryist-and-steemit-friends-i-used-to-be-one-hell-of-a-ball-player ) I lived the life of your stereotypical jock. I spent so much of my early life just practicing and training and practicing some more. Giving virtually no attention to the evils of the world that i am now aware. I thought, and believed, that playing sports (mainly football and baseball) was my calling and my purpose.
I'm an only child, and i spent my youth learning how to hit a baseball, and throw fire from the mound from my father; I played baseball from around the age of 5 to about the age of 20, and played football from 5th grade until i got to college. I spent many many days in my youth playing football by myself in my front yard evading, running over, and catching passes against imaginary opponents. Literally sprinting for miles a day for fun from the age of 5 to around the age of 12 when i started getting enough of a work out from JH sports that the extra running was no longer appealing. Up to this point and even for a while longer i did not pay any attention to the world around me, i did not question the legitimacy, or illegitimacy, of taxation or of government itself. I was essentially your typical kid being molded into your typical flag worshiping drone.

But then, all of a sudden..

One day, out of the blue, i had an electrifying shock of curiosity hit my mind, and i dared to wonder "what was the truth about 9/11?". So i set out, and embarked on a long journey- discovering documentaries like 9/11 in plain sight, loose change 1&2, and many more. Consequently running into people like Alex Jones and Ron Paul. In this process, i was beginning to see the evils of what our government was doing: printing money out of thin air & loaning it to us on interest, over taxing us, establishing a welfare state, police state, and a warfare state along with so many more odious deeds that are inherent to government itself. I was yet to understand that many of these evils are inherent to the concept of government itself, but at this point i had come to the conclusion that the evils we were experiencing was due to how far we had strayed from the constitution and founding principles of American government. I read 1984, a brave new world, and dove deep into the http://founders.archives.gov/ to try to understand these principles in the hopes of finding a viable solution to the problems we faced. From this information I consequently decided i would attempt to become a statesman and change the system from within.
The entire process above started around when turned 16 and my desire to change the system from within in attempt to restore the constitution maintained itself until about last October (i was 20 by this time).

Then, out of almost sheer coincidence

Last October, I stumbled onto a very interesting mind, almost out of complete random. His name is Stefan Molyneux, and i don't know how, or why, but he was the first person to ever present to me the argument that taxation is theft, robbery, and extortion in his video "The truth about taxes", and "The story of your enslavement". Absolutely, and fundamentally altering my worldview and clicking into consistency my already libertarian mindset. He also introduced me to my favorite founding father, Lysander Spooner, and his book "No Treason: The Constitution of No Authority". Which fundamentally altered my perception of the constitution, solidifying my disdain for government and the men and women who will kill me for refusing to do what they say.
Molyneux also introduced me to Mises, Rothbard, Hayek, Hazlitt, Atlas Shrugged, and many more. I also stumbled upon Spontaneous order by Chase Rachels, Larken Rose and all of his work, Adam Kokesh, and so many more talented people who could communicate anarchism, self ownership, and the non-aggression principle to even the most shuttered of minds. Consequently aiding me in my pursuit to un-cageing the minds of men and women which in this past year i have persuaded around 100 people to embrace voluntaryism, and reject personally advocating violence against me, and others, to get the government things that they want. From strangers, to friends, and even family.

The Consequences of Choosing Principles Over Country

In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act. An act which carries burdens that can crush the most hardened minds, and compassionate of hearts. From friendships, to reputation, to family; standing for what is right, standing for what is true, can reek irreversible damage to the life of those who choose to stand for it, and my experience is no exception. I've been shunned by my family, I lost a 4 year long relationship with the love of my life due to my convictions, I've lost friends and acquaintances. I've had to cut people out of my own life, that i did not entirely wish to because their convictions conflicted so much with mine that the relationship was utterly toxic and unhealthy. Its one of those things where at some point the abolitionists have got to stop going to dinners and reunions with their slave owning relatives and friends; And they've got to draw their line in the sand and stand for the principles they believe in. It is a challenging path, but it is one that i encourage you to take. This is the animating contest for freedom, I hope to see you join.

Thanks for reading!
Have a wonderful day!

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I am Jimmy Wood, host of The Animating Podcast and creator of www.theanimatedcontest.com. I am a voluntaryist, anarchist, and freedom lover. I appreciate the upvotes and welcome you to the animated contest for freedom.