Broadly speaking, I came to these forums mostly following an instinct saying, "Try it out. It might be a good idea.
The power of a forum has always been its ability to bring out the sharpest parts of people, since you can sit there and deconstruct a post for a couple of hours before responding with a vicious critique. Over the years, I've gotten really good at speaking my mind in writing without opening up any inconsistencies, so I find that my beliefs are stronger for it.
That's what makes these forums valuable. I also learn a lot, and sometimes I meet people, but those are added bonuses. I started out on these forums having no idea what IM was, except for a couple small tidbits that Steve posted next to subjective reality; through reading posts, I feel I've learned a lot about the practice.
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