I totally understand where you are coming from but I've made a different conclusion. I think of going out and commenting on others material as mutually beneficial. Very little of my time is spent pretending to give a crap (I admit there are maybe 3 people I pretend to give a crap with because i feel that I could perhaps reach them by being direct if I first create a repoire with them and why not get paid while doing it?)

I go out and comment a lot and yes to some extent it's to build a following but more than that, it's to create a two way street. If I just wanted a following, I'd be out seeking a book deal or a record deal, I would have taken the three offers I've had to be on television. What I am looking for is to be an active member of a vibrant community, contributing to the benefit of others. I also believe that if I contribute enough, my needs will be met naturally.

Do I think steemit as a whole is a vibrant, meaningful, community ....not exactly, but it's an easy place to start one in some tiny corner of the platform. Showing interest in others is incentivized and while it may cause many to be fake, it also gets everyone to open their door in a sense and notice what's going on with others, which is good for me cause I've been kicking ass for years without anyone really noticing because I've refused to turn my work into a product.

That being said, with some of the experiences I've had here, it's not hard to imagine feeling exactly the way you do. Had things gone just a tad bit differently, I would probably have written a similar post around hardfork 19, and I will probably write a post like this when steemit goes mainstream and it becomes more difficult to find like minded people with the oversaturation.

I will have to check out your book. I'll look through your old posts as well. I do think there is a chance you might be one of those like minded people