I cannot be more thankful for DNMs and to Ross for getting it all started.
I turned to DNMs a couple of years ago out of desperation. At the time, I was in the middle of my research to earn a PhD. As the case with many PIs, my thesis adviser was unable to renew several of his grants, from which my salary is paid. Eventually it got to the point where it was either pay me or pay for basic lab supplies. I was crushed when he told me that I had to find my own funding to continue my research or end it with a MS. For those unfamiliar with the current state of research funding in the United States, research grants are becoming more difficult to get even for well established and respected researchers. It's become increasingly more difficult for young scientists to enter academia because the amount of grants awarded isn't what it once was.
Since middle school, becoming a research scientist was a dream of mine and earning a PhD was the best way to put me in position to get there. I applied for every grant I could find, but only got one that didn't cover nearly enough of what I needed. I thought of working an extra job but I had no time as I was already in the lab 16-18 hours a day. I also thought of working for a couple of years and return later to complete my PhD, but when I return, my work may be already been completed by another research group. I don't have family with the money to help. I didn't know what to do...I was desperate and depressed. This is when I turned to vending on a DNM. It was slow at first, but things picked up soon enough. I fulfilled orders at a nearby cafe while an experiments were running and shipped my product with other outgoing mail from my lab. I had a philosophy of being honest and professional to all of my customers (even the ones who may not have deserved it) and shipped out every day. I wasn't a big vendor or the most well known, but I always sold out before restocking.
It allowed me to pay for the basic necessities while working to complete my doctorate. I was never in it to become rich or to scratch an itch to do something "bad". In fact, I made just enough to get by and I always had a level of discomfort with the whole thing. All I wanted was to be able to pay for food and rent and be able to accomplish one of the biggest life goals. And I am. Because of what Ross started, I'll be defending my thesis in the not-too-distant future and have already received job offers in the private sector.
What's happened to Ross pains me immensely. I would not be in the position I am right now without him and what he started. For that, I am thankful.
Ross is sitting in jail so we could buy stuff sitting comfy in front of the computer. This is the type of posts I like to see more often. Nowdays the DNM is getting filled with paid shills and DDOS attacks.