I was myself a foolish young communist and the user 3Balls2Screws said something that gave me an opportunity to see that what I believed was nonsense. I joined the USMC and I'm being deployed to Afghanistan in September.

I lurked this sub for a couple of months after a few parts of my communist ideology started to crack, and I saw that here was a community of people who weren't just trolls, but also human beings who cared about their fellow humans. I lurked for a while, read the articles you guys posted, and it felt like a dam had burst. Me coming in from the cold was largely an internal process that I did for myself, just because it was an important psychological hurdle for me to overcome, but it was also very heavily influenced by the comments I got on a now deleted post of mine. (Just to be clear, I know you didn't do it for me. I'm being honest with myself in that I know that I was the one who took that step, but I do think that the things you've said helped a lot.)<br><br>It didn't take long for me to realize that the people who claim to be communist on this sub are either deluding themselves or trying to delude others. The ideas of Marx, Lenin, and Mao are complete and utter nonsense. Conservative ideology has a lot wrong with it as well, but that's another tale.<br><br>After I came back from the cold, I started to consider joining the military. While the initial impetus for my enlistment was largely driven by my desire to stop being a coward and to fight against the forces of communism, I realized that the service I will be able to do is more than that. I'm going to be able to serve my fellow man in a way that I never could have as a Marxist. I'm going to be able to help liberate the people of Afghanistan from the iron grip of the Taliban and their evil ideology (which is probably the most overtly Marxist thing I've ever seen). I'm going to be able to die for something greater than myself and for something that means something.<br><br>So, I want to say thank you to 3Balls2Screws for pointing out a specific logical fallacy that made me realize that communism is not the right path. Thank you for pointing out a problem with the specific thing I was saying that made me realize that the thing I was saying was wrong. Thank you for giving me the chance to see the truth and for giving me a chance to serve my fellow man in a meaningful way. I'm not perfect, but I'm better than I was before, and I'm being deployed to Afghanistan in September as a private in the United States Marine Corps.<br><br>You did this all unintentionally. You didn't do it for me. I still know and acknowledge that ultimately it was entirely my choice and nothing you did was for my benefit or the benefit of anyone other than your own (although I can't imagine why it would benefit you in any way). I just want to say thank you, because it feels like the right thing to do.<br><br>&#x200B;