I guess @dan's idea of "free market solutions" is more about recognizing the fundamental mechanisms and building solutions on them. One basic assumption is that people act selfishly. By recognizing that, you can build a system which lets people act selfishly, but which directs the energy to a positive outcome by using suitable incentives. People can act freely within the boundaries of the system, but the rules aren't forced on anyone, because they can leave whenever they want. It's a free market solution - until people are "born into steem" and cannot leave :-). The rich making new rules within a society where everyone else is born and cannot leave, is not a free market solution, as you pointed out. However in Steem, the rules are created first, then everyone who agrees to the rules is welcome to join, which brings more value to the system. Thus "the rulers become rich", and not "the rich create rules". The difference is vast. Bringing value to the whole - and thus to the rulers too - is completely voluntary. What is amazing is that it looks like it's easy to bring value, but difficult to take/reduce value. Beat that!