Hello Steem, I am in you!

This account is a persona. Why create a persona you ask? When you take part in the crypto economy, it’s a bad idea to share what your activities are in terms of what you are building and transacting in. Especially with tying your legal name, account balances, and addresses to those activities. It makes you a target for hackers, trolls, governments, etc. Anonymity can be a powerful thing for good or for evil. It can be used to join controversial conversations and speak your mind without repercussions. It can also be used escape accountability for doing damage to others. People have been doxed, or worse yet swatted just for discussing controversial ideas. This behavior is bullshit. It's so pathetic to have an argument so fundamentally weak, that you need to destroy someone's reputation or invoke violence upon them.

I want to talk about what I am doing in this ecosystem, be honest, while at the same time reduce risk. I don’t want to imply what I am doing is revolutionary or anything. Just go to Crypto Twitter and you’ll see all manner of cartoon animals and meme profile photos. I just want to explore why I feel this approach is important under certain circumstances. You could very well have a public persona tied to your real name or business, where you can disclose or share less risky information.

So why Steem? It’s hard to disconnect completely, but my goal is to divest myself from big corporate platforms like Facebook, Google, and Twitter. They do not offer equity in how they treat users, and their goal is to monetize you by any means necessary. With a decentralized platform like Steem, I monetize myself. Maybe a thousand people upvote this intro at 100% and I can buy a steak dinner, or maybe just a few do and I can buy a few Chicklets. Either way, it’s my problem. I am assuming responsibility for monetizing myself, for creating a personal brand. I am no longer relying on platforms that collude to butcher my data, package it up and sell it like flank steak. I am no longer cattle on their farm. I am no longer a hamster on their wheel. I am no longer a slave on their plantation.

I know first hand that’s it's hard to escape that world because all of your friends are there. We may never escape completely. But I can tell you this much, I am going to relegate these platforms to as insignificant a role as possible as I watch them slowly die off. Because it is what they deserve. I truly believe they will die off eventually. People are waking up.

I see a great foundation being built here, with great DApps, and an active community. I am happy to take part.

Cheers and Happy Hashing,

IBuildNodez