STEEMFest 4 ... "The Whales vs. The Minnows Chess Takedown" (100,000 - or 1 - STEEM Prize)steemCreated with Sketch.

in powerhousecreatives •  6 years ago 

STEEMFest 4

"Welcome Steemians! 

This is your host, @SpreadForWhales ... your favorite Top 20 Witness ... and we are gathered here in Lawlessness Park, in the wonderful city of Steemtopia, for a live video-cast of the The Whales vs. The Minnows Chess Takedown. Playing for the Whales is the Master of Disaster, the Curator of Chaos, the Ransacker of Regulation himself ... @Anarchooooooooooo-Zealot!!! Playing for the Minnows is @QuillFire, who, if you can imagine ... only has a $0.01 upvote!

Folks, there's Big Money on the line. If Anarcho-Zealot wins, he'll add 100,000 STEEM to his already huge bankroll and, if QuillFire wins, he'll add 1 STEEM to his. As you can see, the Players have made their opening moves and the game is underway. Of course, given the players respective wallet sizes, we all know how this will end ... but let's pretend we don't. Hmmm. QuillFire seems to be making a fuss about something. Let's listen in."

"Sorry, mate, you can't do that. Rooks can only move horizontally and vertically, not diagonally."

"My Rook can move any way it wants."

"No it can't. Are you not familiar with the Rules of Chess?" 

Anarcho smiled slyly ... much like a weasel, but worse: "Dude ... it's 'No Rulers, No Rules.' I can move any way I like. It's called Freedom."



Quill's eyes narrowed. "If we're going to play together, we'll both have to play by the same Rules. Otherwise, either of us could just cheat and that would defeat the whole point of the game."

"Cheat!? Dude, if there are No Rules to break ... then I'm not breaking any Rules, am I?" 

"All games require Rules. Indeed, it is specifically those Rules that differentiate a game from all others. Come on, mate ... just play fair and we'll have some fun." 

"Ah," exclaimed Anarcho in exasperation, melodramatically raising his hands into the air as if in supplication to the Heavens (while glancing at the crowd and the cameras to ensure he had an audience). "Do you see what we Whales have to put up with? Demands for Rules and Fairness! Do you know who else wants Rules? Commies! Commies and Fascist Dictators. Nazi scum. Control freaks. And Fairness ... Fairness is subjective. Just like Quality."

Some of the other Whales in the crowd, and many of the Top 20 Witnesses (who were dependent upon Anarcho's stake-weighted Witness Vote), cheered Anarcho's rejoinder dressed as lament. It was so ... anarcho-clever. A word-salad of nothingness, that sounded like somethingness, unless you thought about it ... for 5 seconds. Quill glanced around. Most of the assembled crowd, comprised mostly of Plankton, Minnows and Dolphins, were not cheering but instead sat steely-eyed. But, as usual ... they remained silent, as is expected and required of the Silent Majority.   

"So ... this is the way it's going to be," Quill quietly queried, "No Rulers, No Rules?"

"This is the way it IS," Anarcho sneered in retort. "My opinions are worth a lot more than yours because they're stake-weighted. So, whatever I say ... goes. And I say my Rooks, but not yours, can move diagonally. And, if you don't like it ... you can kiss my ass."

Quill sat silently for a moment, contemplating what he'd just heard. After a few moments, his eyebrows arched slightly and he began subtly nodding his head. "OK, then." With that, he rose and walked around the park table upon which they had been playing. Upon arriving behind the seated Anarcho, he reached out, took hold of a handful of Anarcho's hair ... and smashed his face against the marble table-top. Hard.

A collective gasp emanated from the onlooking crowd as Anarcho leapt to his feet, hand clutching his broken and bleeding nose. "Are you FUCKING crazy?" he wailed.

"No Rulers, No Rules ... remember?" 

With that Quill punched Anarcho straight in the mouth. Anarcho careened backwards, arms windmilling as he flailed. Quill advanced towards him. "You see, Annie, I'm an ex-military hand-to-hand combat instructor and I'm going to use my 'steak-weighting,' and Freedom to do as I please, not to kiss your ass ... but to kick the shit out of it."

"You can't do that," wailed Anarcho," that's against the Law!" 

"The Law? The Law is but a set of Rules, enforced by Rule Enforcers. But you said, 'No Rulers, No Rules.' It's every man for himself and the ends justify the means. And, since I want to win ..." With that, Quill threw a couple of right jabs and followed up with a left upper cut into Anarcho's exposed rolls of stomach fat, a condition no doubt the consequence of Anarcho's favorite snack food: Cheatos. Anarcho crumpled to the ground, gasping for air.


Quill began slowly circling the blubberous writer of Python. As he did, he glanced into the crowd who were now all on their feet. "What's wrong Whales? This is your 'No-Rules mantra' in action, except this time it's one of your own on the receiving end of your dictums. The constraints on social behavior, derived from thousands of years of civilization, reduced to the Law of the Jungle. Everyone gets to do whatever they want and damn the consequences. Anarchy ... 'Satoshi's Dream.'"

Quill peered down at the gasping and blubbering Anarcho. "Did you catch my pun about 'steak-weighting?' You know, 'steak' ... as in meat and muscle, instead of 'stake' ... as in number of votes? Annie, did you think that was funny?" An inarticulate mumbling emanated from the remnants of Anarcho's bloodied and battered face. 

"I hope that wasn't a, 'No,' Annie. No matter, you're entitled to your opinion and I to mine. But, since I thought it was hilarious, and only my opinion counts since I'm the Big Man, it was. So ... I'll need some upvotes as reward for my brilliance. Give me your wallet."    

Perhaps not surprisingly, Annie's wallet seemed to mean more to him than did his remaining teeth as he clutched his right hand over his back right pocket. Quill raised an eyebrow and moved forward, placing the heel of his shoe on the outstretched fingers of Anarcho's left hand which had been propping up his upper body. And then, in one fluid motion, Quill shifted all his weight onto that heel. Ah, the things you learn in the army. Good times. There was a crunch as bones instantly shattered. Anarcho unleashed a scream of agony that would have impressed Satan at his most vindictive.  

"Give me your wallet."

With a trembling hand, Anarcho hurriedly dug out his wallet and passed it to Quill. Peering inside, "Annie, you carry a lot of cash! Let's see: One ... two ... three ... four hundred and twenty ... forty ... sixty ... eighty-three dollars. $483 for a barely comprehensible pun that took approximately one second to 'create.' That sounds like par for the course for your posts, doesn't it? Oh, and give me that fancy-looking watch of yours too." Anarcho desperately did as instructed.

"Thank you for your generous support. Now Annie, I have an important question for you ... so listen carefully and think before you answer: How are Rooks allowed to move?"

"Horibonilly and verbicilly," Anarcho blubbered through his swollen lips and broken teeth.



"And Annie ... are they allowed to move diagonally?

Anarcho vehemently shook his head in the negative, "Nobe."

"And what about common-sense Rules of Conduct to prevent cheating and extremely anti-social behaviors ... are they only for Commies and Fascist Dictators?"

"Nobe." 

"It doesn't feel very good when people treat you like shit and take away things they haven't earned, does it Annie?"

"Nobe."

"So, we should all try to refrain from being assholes, shouldn't we?"

"Yeth."

"Well, I'm glad we've come to an agreement respecting the Rules of Chess ... and conducting yourself in a civilized manner." And with that, Quill gingerly helped the beaten-to-within-an-inch-of-his-life Anarcho-Zealot to his feet and gently sat him back down at the park table. Crossing around to the other side of the table, Quill, too, took his seat. Then he reached over to the refreshments side-table and poured them both a cup of tea.    

"Now, as I recall ... it's still your move."


Quill   


*****


A Series of Articles About Steemit Cheating, Bad Behavior & The Need For Reforms (Proposals Included).  If you can read only one, read number 4.

  1. Jerry Banfield, Down-Voting & Freedom of Speech
  2. "Down-Voting as Censorship" - A Series About Fixing Steemit - Part 2
  3. "Derivatives" - A Series About Fixing Steemit - Part 3
  4. "Central Premise & Proposals" - A Series About Fixing Steemit - Part 4
  5. FOLLOW UP: "Central Premise & Proposals" - A Series About Fixing Steemit - Part 4
  6. The Bane of Bidbots ... An Intelligent & Civil Discourse


All images herein are QuillFire modifications of images in the public domain.


    

You guys know the QuillDrill. Be verbose ... but articulate.

And remember ...    

Go Love a Starving Poet    

For God's sake ... they're starving!  


   

 

    

Authors get paid when people like you upvote their post.
If you enjoyed what you read here, create your account today and start earning FREE STEEM!
Sort Order:  

@quillfire

Quill -

It has taken me a while to come back to this. The analogy is so apt; the satire on point; it is so well written that I had a visceral reaction to the violence. As I always do. And I was reading it at 5.30am. Not sensible.

There is much in your post and in the comments that followed that resonate. The issues of corruption and inappropriately acquired power are so much front of mind for me: South Africa has to deal with deep-rooted corruption which is just being uncovered and which still risks sending our country to the fiscal cliff. It was exactly these things, on a smaller level, that turned the environment in which I had happily worked as a consultant for more than 25 years, into a toxic cesspool. It turned me into a jibbering wreck and a near pauper. Every piece of evidence in my last research project and associated recommendations were second-guessed. A six-month project took 12 - no actually more, because it was 24/7 and shouldn't have been. So bad was it, that when we did the public presentation, a fellow consultant on whom I'd never clapped eyes, took on a director general of a national government department and berated her and the team for their treatment of my team and I. By that point, because they were paying the bill, I was more than done. There was no rational reason for this conduct - we had tested our work with peers who warned us that it was "too good - they won't understand it". We knew it was not what they wanted (needed) to hear; we were the best bidders (experience and price) but not their preferred bidders. Their "preferred" bidders were pals and would have been referees and players. Yes, it left me bruised and bloody and, yes, defeated. To keep my ethics and soul in tact, I have now walked away from that type of work and the sector. Completely. With nothing. The jaundice about which I wrote in my introductory post on Steemit, remains. A digression. But.

All this is what is happening here. As you say. This brings me to

they remained silent, as is expected and required of the Silent Majority

There comes a time when this bunch actually begins to hit back, and I think, as you point out, this is beginning to happen here (and in South Africa). The PHC strategy in the poll demonstrates that. I have just written a post about two other communities of which I am part and which share the ethics espoused in our PHC community. I would like to believe that if the changes are coming - as you and @bluemist suggest - then it will be for the good.

I have to believe that. As I do for South Africa. Perhaps it's because I'm a glass half full (of wine) girl or just insanely idealistic. I do have to believe that good triumphs over evil, and that rules (bent occasionally) are essential. The one that I think is central to all of this is:

Do no harm.

It seems, though, that there are sadists and megalomaniacs on the platform that unless reigned in, will ensure this does not happen.

That said, if there is a shoul of minnows and dolphins who form a school to take on the whales, I'm in.

Loading...

Brilliant read as always @quillfire

People perception of their own politics is fascinating. One man's communism is another man's dictatorship. It's all a matter of opinion and stance at the time of writing. Subconscious needs controlling their virtuous arguments that, in the end, just end up being about having the power and staying on top.

Unfortunately, this is not just a Steemit problem.

Great job my friend.

Gaz

@cheese4ead,

Hi Cheese.

One man's communism is another man's dictatorship. It's all a matter of opinion and stance at the time of writing.

Food for thought: When such terms are hurled about as the result of someone suggesting that the blockchain needs a few common-sense, community-determined Rules of Conduct, like those in force in any other real world organization to which one might belong, is it really about "people's perception of politics?"

Or, as I would argue, are such ad hominem attacks designed to "shut down conversations before they begin?" This is the oldest rhetorical trick in the book. Obviously, arguing that "bidbots are destroying curation" has nothing to do with any political philosophy and only an ideologue, incapable of making a cogent counter-argument, would attempt to assert otherwise.

People need to stop falling for it. This is Misdirection 101. This is not about being Left or Right (or like myself, Centrist), it's about cheating or playing fairly. Name one other organization that permits systemic levels of cheating ... indeed, where the "leaders of the organization" encourage it since they're the ones who own the mechanisms of the malfeasance.

Actually, I could name one: The present government of Venezuela.

Quill

Totally agree. @quillfire

It's easy to shot out 'Racist, Fascist, Nazi, Commie etc to shout someone down and try to kill off what would be sane and reasonable debate. Fear of losing your power, position and control drive these people.

The good of the whole community then gets lost in a sh*tfest of slander, lies and deceit. Like you say, smoke and mirrors, misdirection for the true issues that the powers that be are burying!

@cheese4ead,

To quote our illustrious and indefatigable, @jaynie, "BOOM!"

Quill

😁

Arhhh... Painful. No rules? That's what everyone gets...

Posted using Partiko Android

@lilacse,

"Arhhh"... is right.

How are we supposed to solve tough problems when we can't even deal with this chickenshit stuff? Read my hyperlinked posts ... the solutions are easy.

As long as cryptos are dominated by ideologues (Political Anarchists), we'll flounder. I pray for the day when the hated Goldman Sachs of the world (greedy bastards, but at least adults) get in here, take over and start banging some heads together.

Quill

Okay... remind me never to play chess with you!

However, I completely agree with the sentiment of the post. It is one that I struggle with as well, in a society that is larger than what can be feasibly bound by reputation or familiarity of trading/interaction partners... there does need to a formal set of rules to bind behavior.... and like it or not, some entity that can enforce those rules. Sadly, if there are those who abuse the rules to get ahead... however, that doesn't make for a persuasive case to throw out the concept of rules altogther!

@bengy,

Okay... remind me never to play chess with you!

:-)

Technology changes, people don't. And the Human Element is what has been so distorted in cryptoland. It's not about the computer code ... it's about the genetic one. Human beings are incredibly (even pathetically) social animals. We have, over millions of years, evolved an incredibly complex set of social values that are built into our genes. These cannot be turned off. So, you write computer code that reflects them. And, where the code cannot handle their complexity, you create a system that incorporates human discretion.

In cryptoland, if a solution is not "an algorithm," then it's no good.

This fantasyland, created by a sub-group of people notoriously low in social skills, computer programmers, is not sustainable. When normal people are "cheated," they do not react by shrugging their shoulders as if it were some "white paper abstraction" ... they feel Anger, Contempt or Disgust (the three negative "Other-Judging Emotions) and seek to punish the cheater. Every Rebellion and Revolution is history has started this way.

If STEEM/Steemit is to cohere, it needs to start operating in a manner that is not innately objectionable to human social values.

Quill

Priceless buddy. This is so fabulously funny. 👍👍

Posted using Partiko Android

@wonderwop,

Thanks mate. I always have fun writing satire. If it doesn't make me laugh, I cut it out. The trial and error results in my guffawing like an idiot. :-)

Quill

Well played, good sir! And...


via GIPHY

@traciyork - I love that. How do you do that? :D

@traciyork,

Traci, I kid you not when I say that this is the BEST GIF I have ever seen. By a mile.

If only I'd had this for the post itself.

It is ... delicious.

If someone with upvote power sees this comment, would you do me a huge favor and upvote this to the very top?

Quill

Well I don't have much power either, but yea! we got it to the top! You are so awesome with those gifs @traciyork.

Even though I usually don't like fighting, I think there are a few whales that really could use a bit of your persuasion. I usually can only keep sane by not even looking at what they are up to...
Very funny!

@mariannewest,

... I usually don't like fighting ...

Agreed.

But Satire is an Art Form defined by its demands. By its very nature, it is not funny if it doesn't bite. Had Mark Twain been unwilling to demean the absurd, the whole point of satire, we never would have heard of him. A satirist counts on his/her audience's willingness to 'suspend reality' and let him/her 'violate literal norms' for the sake of achieving a 'metaphorical effect.'

Much of Art ... is a conspiracy of the willing.

Thanks for conspiring. :-)

Quill

Always love to conspire 😀 (and love Mark Twain)

@mariannewest,

Me too. Twain is one of my all-time favorite writers. I have studied at length how he employed humor. It's very hard to make a thing look that easy. Especially satire. There is an extremely fine line between "satire which is humorous" ... and simply "being mean."

I consider Twain the ultimate Master of the Craft.

Quill

Wow, very well done Quivering Quill!

Enjoyed comments -

@fionasfavourites how we feel down here in our region, handful of fat, bloated, greedy people...

Gif shared by @traciyork sums up how we feel!

Every comment related in some way or another to distaste.

Definitely not what Satoshi envisaged, the future is made up by many, small eventually rise out of frustration or anger.

@joanstewart,

Hey Joan.

Enjoyed comments -

Honestly, I've got some of the best commenters on the blockchain. It's an embarrassment of riches. When one takes the time to create a thing of quality, it is heartening to see others do the same in response.

Quill

Awesome job @quillfire. I giggled all the way through. As always, you're dead on. Maybe you should become a witness and fix this sh*t .

@tryskele,

To change anything on the blochchain requires 17/20 Top 20 Witness Votes. Reform will require persuasion, not compulsion. And persuasion ... requires a pen, not a perch.

Quill

Which is why you're the perfect choice to be the pen for those of us that are not so eloquent. You teach the lesson without someone seeing it's a lesson.

Persuasion is usually the best route to take with enough time you usually can reach someone to understand a point of view. Which is why I mentioned you becoming a witness. Level the playing field so to speak. However, I do feel your voice is big enough to get those people to start thinking.

@tryskele,

Let me tell you what will level the playing field ... a great bloody mob. Yes, mobs tend to coalesce around an "eloquent speaker" (a "rabble rouser" ... think about what that term literally means). But it is the existence of a mob, per se, that makes those ignoring the "eloquent speech," finally listen.

To wit, the Storming of the Bastille:
.

.
If the dummies insist upon anarchy, give them anarchy.

Quill

Always thought chess was a non violent game hahaha
Love how you presented the shenigans :)

@kaerpediem,

You should see me play checkers. Now THAT ... is a blood-sport. :-)

Quill

Ha ha ha! You made me chuckle Mr QuillFire! :)

Posted using Partiko Android

@felt.buzz,

Hey Buzz.

The satire in me builds up and build up and, if I don't discharge it once in a while, I begin to roll around on the floor ... while speaking in tongues. One of the things I've discovered on Steemit is how much I like to write humor, and the kind of humor I most like to write.

Absurdity attracts me like a magnet.

Here's a post I wrote ... $0.81 payout ... that makes me laugh my ass off when I go back and read it. And, it makes Poor Ol' @NickyHavey pee in his pants. I hope you'll enjoy it:

https://steemit.com/comedyopenmic/@quillfire/bring-back-the-bullies-some-of-us-self-evidently-need-an-ass-kicking-comedyopenmic-39

Quill

Well this gets a standing ovation from me Quillington. Going to read part 4 so I can see what you have planned but this "no ruler no rules" approach really is a load of crap. I liken it to back gardens and cat s__t littered about the place.

The back garden (steem); pruned, trimmed and looking like a welcoming place from afar and the cat s__t; littered about the place, leaving remnants of an anarchist's meal. Imagine what it would be like if there was some enforcement in place. Perhaps lasers, a loud noise to scare them off from doing it - you'd have a beautiful garden indeed.

Instead, we have patches of grass burned all the way through from the acid in the s__t, piles of unwanted brown stuff that seems to constantly deposit itself in unlimited forms because the gardeners haven't done anything about it.

"This is what you could have had, instead, you have cat s__t"

@nickyhavey,

In all but the formality of doing so, this post is dedicated to you. I didn't formally dedicate it to you because I thought there was a chance it would be attacked and I didn't want to drag anyone else into the mire with me.

Analogy is one of the most potent literary tools in existence because it is one of the most potent psychological tools in existence. The "cat shit/urine/litter box" analogy ... brilliant. One of the benefits of reading other great writers is being exposed to different ways of expressing similar ideas. And it's not just (or even most importantly) "different words," it's the differrnt thought processes that yield those words.

BTW ... "liken" is a good word I rarely use. Stealing.

Quill

Hahaha ¡Good match! master @quillfire. :)

I hope that with this lordly lesson, Anarcho-Zealot finally had learned one thing or two about how 'chess' should be played.

@por500bolos,

Hey mate.

I am often amazed by the arguments made by crypto enthusiasts in general, and STEEM enthusiasts in particular. All this Political World Revolution baloney. Fellas ... if you weren't smart enough to make work a replacement for Facebook/YouTube ... that pays one to both write and read ... there is precisely zero chance you're smart enough to negate from existence the world's governments.

Zero.

Quill

I’m in!

Posted using Partiko iOS

@buttcoins,

Hi Butt.

You wonder how much longer it will take the Chiefs to figure out that the Indians aren't happy. How many more have to become inactive, or leave for another blockchain, before they get the message ... the cheating and inane behavior won't be tolerated?

Respecting the latter, go take a look at the comments section (about half way down) of my 17-year-old daughter's first Steemit post. These are Whales ... and they want us to recruit new users? All the good work of regular people being undone by morons ... but endlessly tolerated because they have fat wallets.

Quill

Wait... I don’t see a link and don’t know your daughters steemit name.

@buttcoins,

Excellent points. Sorry, I obviously meant to include the link, and just as obviously, forgot. Not paying attention.

https://steemit.com/powerhousecreatives/@savagekathryn/chillquill-lights-up-the-quill-grill-quillfire-roast-or-toast-contest-daughter-s-edition-my-1st-steemit-post

Quill

And then they advocate that violence is never a solution!

Rules are rules for a reason,
many follow only for a season.
then they make their own,
with hearts of stone.

Great post Quill.

@papilloncharity,

Even in Heaven, there are Angels that carry swords. :-)

Quill

True my friend, against those that do not obey the rules, as in the case of your chess opponent that makes his own rules, by stating that there are no rules. His statement is a rule in itself and my little stanza was meant for all of those of his ilk!
Blessings!

This is where you think nothing can get any better and that's it for today

I truly love this! Perfectly explained with a pinch of gallows humour :) Love it :D

@route-m-d,

Anyone who uses the term "gallows humour" (and spells humour with a "u" ... I'm a Canadian but live in the US) ... is a friend of mine. :-)

BTW, good profile logo. It's eye-catching.

Quill

@quillfire high five then! :)

Congratulations @quillfire! This post was selected by the Power House Creatives as today's Rally Upvote Post :)

You can find the community announcement on Discord :) and it has also been shared on our FB Page and Twitter feed.

PHC-Footer-05.gif

@steemitbloggers,

Well ... just look at that beautiful logo. It almost brings tears to my eyes.

I think I'll pour a glass of Merlot and raise it in salutation.

Quill

He who has the gold makes the rules. "They Live" quote

@rebeccabe,

He who lives by the sword, dies by it.

If the Whale-organized cheating doesn't stop, it will kill the blockchain. And who owns most of the blockchain? No one has more to gain if reforms are enacted, and no one has more to lose if they are not.

Quill

Ahh sht this really did make me laugh out loud....

Folks, there's Big Money on the line. If Anarcho-Zealot wins, he'll add 100,000 STEEM to his already huge bankroll and, if QuillFire wins, he'll add 1 STEEM to his.

so much so that you'll get no lol's from me. Damn, I just double negatived myself.

I love the extended metaphor about whale behavior on steem. Seriously, it is like minnows are playing this game:

and whales be like, nah mate check out this move:

check mate minnow... I was moving on 7 different levels to you. Now bow down to my almighty Steem Power mortal 😂😂😂

@raj808,

Hi Raj.

The Whales are not outsmarting anyone. They're destroying the thing in which they've invested their fortunes. If even a small portion of the remaining Minnows leave for other blockchains, the price of STEEM will plummet ... and then they too will become Minnows.

Corrupt systems never survive. We need to reform before it's too late.

Does no one read history? This is what happens when contempt becomes disgust and the masses demand restitution (revenge).
.

.
Quill

  ·  6 years ago (edited)

Hi Quill

I completely agree with what you're saying.

My gifs and comment was more to do with the fact that they don't follow any rules, and in fact, a proportion of them believe themselves to be above reproach based on one factor; vested steem.

As you say, they're destroying there own investment by abusing and driving away the people who drive/sustain the steem economy.

I'm not sure how it will all play out at this point, but I know one thing for sure. A large proportion of the witnesses and devs don't really care about content creators which is exemplified by their attempts to take the funds for the workers proposal from author rewards.

I tried to point out the short-sightedness of undervaluing good content creators on both 'the state of steem' and 'the witness discussion' discord shows. In both instances I was swarmed on by numerous people all with the same arguments about the funds needing to come from somewhere and author rewards should be part of it. Also, there seemed to be a lot of people pushing the idea that steem won't be as they called it 'a blogging blockchain' in the future. Beyond it getting me quite pissed on a personal level, it made me sad for the future, as honestly, these are the people with the power. So if that's their 'company line' it's probable that's what they're planning.

Minnows, who are nearly always content creators rather than devs, get shafted a lot on steem. I guess I've just been here so long now that my go to reaction around this subject is humour, as if I didn't laugh I'd cry.

》The Whales are not outsmarting anyone. They're destroying the thing in which they've invested their fortunes.

100% agree, and also what you're saying about people leaving. It baffles me that devs, witnesses and whales don't see that they're limiting the chances of success with short term thinking. Abusing and gaming the system for short term profit, while driving away people that could drive real growth. For example, at least 75% of the decent creative writers have left steem. I rarely post fiction or poetry myself anymore. It's only one type of content but imagine a mass exodus. Dtube content is something that is still relatively well rewarded but I've heard rumours that steemit.inc are going to pull their 1 million delegation which will make the dtube vote plummet to a dollar or so. Hypothetical of course, but I'm pretty sure all the decent film makers will leave when they're making pennies. Steem without good content is doomed to fail.

Absolutely reform needs to happen. But the fear of downvotes from the bad actors with millions of 'Steem power' is a big problem.

Anyway, it makes my head (and soul) hurt to think about it sometimes, as steem has/had such potential to change things for many, both socially and economically.

Loading...

OMG I freaking loved this post! I'm so glad you are joining us on @steemfiction for the next book. Talk about telling it like it is and using chess for the analogy was priceless. I especially loved the "beat down" that followed the "No Rulers, No Rules" behavior to be used against them. And the "Cheatos" was priceless as well. Well, crap every damn thing was good, I can't just repeat the whole thing. Great job!

@blueeyes8960,

This is one of the best comments I've ever received ... and I've received some great ones.

Thanks Blue.

Quill

Wow, thanks a lot!

Chess? I fail tremendously on this mind game

Posted using Partiko Android

@ireenchew,

Like all things, "practice makes perfect" ... or at least a lot better. :-)

Quill

Arr, tis a cracking tale me arty...

@wales,

It tis, tisn't it?

Quill

Well done good Sir!

#powerhousecreatives

@arbitrarykitten,

Thanks Arb.

Satire, like revenge, is a dish best eaten cold.

Quill

Quill,

I genuinely feel sorry for whomever peed in your Wheaties. You are a man of great patience so to see someone push you past that edge and invoke such a violent reaction is truly telling.

However, this is a great advertisement for the game of chess! I'm sure everyone will be wanting to learn how to play it now and will eagerly line up to see if they can best you. ;-)

Mattifer

@mattifer,

And ... what do want to bet that they'll know how Rooks can move? :-)

Delayed by Contest and aftermath ... but still working on what we discussed.

Quill

@Quill,

They will all most certainly know how Rooks can move. Of that I have no doubt. That may even be inclined to think that their Queen is limited in the same fashion - be wary of that. It would be a cheap win on your part if you take advantage of their trepidation.

I've barely had a moment to be on Steemit myself since our meeting. But good news! The program has been approved for implementation at Grafton Correctional Institute. Woot!

Mattifer

Congratulations @quillfire! You have completed the following achievement on the Steem blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :

You published more than 90 posts. Your next target is to reach 100 posts.

Click here to view your Board
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP

To support your work, I also upvoted your post!

Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness and get one more award and increased upvotes!