Wow! What a wonderful and well composed riposte - it is not often that I hear such acumen.
I agree to a very great extent until it gets to the point where the reality is realised and the action is taken. Steemit and steem are symbiotic - 100%. Neither are the blockchain - that is entirely indpendant. If this steemit is to prevail, there has to be a distribution of ownership which is seen to be beneficial to the steemit community. At present I hope you would see that there has been very little genuine demonstrable benefit.
The selling down of SP is a fear which the whole steem community is afraid of.
I strongly suspect that there are background buyers of steem to support the price.
In the meantime the data is hardly compelling: 120,000 subscribers and about 4,000 active accounts in about 6 months.
Over 80% of the value is held by the top 67 names.
How is this great idea going to achieve sustainable value?
The value will be achieved through a burgeoning of the subscriber base to a level which a Capital Markets perspective will deem 'real'.
At present nobody could deem this 'real' because there are too many fake accounts and the system relies upon votes for posts which are barely read.
I am one of the few who actually reads - though I do have an auto voting account. (Just demonstrating my adherence to integrity).
If steem, as a cryptocurrency disappeared tomorrow, the world would not even blink, let alone shed a tear.
So, what are the parameters? The parameter which is most acutely pressing is time. Over the next few months there will be further reward for content social media platforms and their functionality will show steemit up for what it is - poor.
The functionality of steemit is not just poor, it is antediluvian!
Would you join it were there no rewards?
Not a cat's chance in hell! No messaging, no voip, no storing of posts - it is possibly the worst functionality of all sites in the world, disregarding rewards!
So, how is it going to succeed?
If it is going to succeed it has to succeed fast - 'busy' - almost a cousin or step-brother to steemit is coming soon, 'yours' is too - I bet there are many more quietly watching.
If the power elite believe that the retention of SP is to their advantage, they will qualify for one of the most outstanding Darwin Awards ever - RIP!
I fight this fight because I have come across writers whom I admire. I read the posts, unlike the vast majority.
They will find a new outlet.
Steem, upon its current course, is more than mortally wounded by its system of command. A great idea; bad protocol; simply diabolical expression of control by a bunch of absolute prats.
Namaste.