Hello all! I am new to the board here, but I have been lurking (watching) for a few years now. I can say that Stefan was the key person that changed me from a white knighting, statist, and generally confused person to the voluntarism that I am today. I can not thank you and this community enough for the knowledge it has passed on.
Onto the issue, the title pretty much sums it up. How do I find like minded people? Not even like minded people for that matter but, voluntary people at least. I live in the American southeast (Alabama) in a city that was recently ranked #4 in the nation for poverty. (You can look it up if you want) The city was once poised to be one of the greatest in the state, (you can look at our interstate system for a clue, 10x bigger than it needs to be. This area really doesn't even need one) but it has been ruined by politics. The majority of my city is made up of drug addicts (mainly methamphetimine) and welfare kings and queens. The rest of the people seem normal but turn out to all be bigots, sociopaths, or just generally unlikable people. I have met two individuals who I thought were liberty minded but I have had to cut ties with both due to the above circumstances. I'm not trying to sound helpless, but I really want people to understand the situation here is pretty terrible.
That all being said, what can I do to send out a beacon to others? I've tried meeting people IRL, as well as online and it seems that I cant find anyone that either thinks my anarchist ideas are crazy, or they are crazy themselves. (But I repeat myself) I am slowly becoming more and more of a recluse, because I find that even trying to meet people shatters my hopes because it always turns out so bad, leaving me wanting to just be alone.
I have thought about moving and honestly I would like to leave the united states. Not really that I was to, but I almost find it a necessity at this point. But for now my parents and grandparents are aging and I wish to stay with them at least for now. But how can I deal with being completely socially alone outside of my family? I have just tried putting my ideals aside and having "normal" shallower friendships with people but they really don't seem to go anywhere. I have TONS of friends, yet I want people who have ambition, motivation, and courage to stand up and not only do what's right for themselves but for others too.
One of the hardest obstacles I encounter when trying to make friends is my intelligence. People see me providing insight as rude or "talking down to them" when I am really just honestly trying to share my intellect with them. But in a town like this, I've never met someone as smart or smarter than me and it scares me greatly. I was tested when I was 8 years old by a psychiatrist for all kinda of disorders because my parents couldn't deal with me using their traditional parenting methods. Once the psychiatrist informed them of my 138 IQ they then understood why they were having such issues.
I really believe I am writing this not to get help from you, as I don't know if it' even possible. But rather a message to others in my position, you are not alone, and you are not the one that's the problem for not fitting into a society like we have today. But I do hope aswell maybe someone in my area is a member here and will see this or that someone may have advice for this situation.