@buggedout wrote https://steemit.com/steem/@buggedout/speculation-killed-the-steem-dollar-utility

But when it comes to the STEEM DOLLAR, the recent speculation comes at the expense of something good. Despite what many people on this platform would claim, the STEEM DOLLAR was designed to be a peg to the US Dollar and provide stability.

Please note the bolded parts. The intention here is clear. The STEEM DOLLAR is meant to be a stable currency so that merchants can adopt the platform and not be concerned about price volatility.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am also an Author here on the STEEM platform and my post rewards are up significantly due to the recent price pump of the STEEM DOLLAR. As an Author I am happy with the price pump and you need to keep in mind that all the other Authors here who are justifying, explaining and promoting the STEEM DOLLAR pump have a vested interest in doing so.

But the fact remains, the STEEM DOLLAR peg to the US Dollar is currently broken. It has become a Speculative Asset for whatever reason, therefore it’s real Utility as a stable cryptocurrency is gone. It is no longer attractive for Merchants to use and it is no longer attractive as a place to store Crypto wealth in a stable and safe place. So the speculative pump comes at the cost of this very important STEEM DOLLAR Utility.

Now before you come at me with your arguments to tear me down, answer me this simple question :-

What can STEEM DOLLARS do that STEEM can’t?

The answer is NOTHING. If you want to speculate on something then buy STEEM because at least STEEM can be converted to STEEM POWER and give you influence and voting power on the platform. STEEM DOLLARs give you NOTHING that STEEM can’t give you. You want 3 second block times? Free transactions? Use STEEM. So why would anyone in their right mind buy STEEM DOLLARs at this current inflated (and unstable) price?

So I come back to my original statement.

Speculation has killed the STEEM DOLLAR Utility.

It is NOT filling the role it was designed for.

In another of his posts he advocated for a witness who was in a minority of the group of total witnesses who believe that a multiplier should be used to increase the amount of steem dollars created in order to drive the price back down. Steem dollars are also being used to buy influence through voting bots, and because this is extremely profitable as a strategy it's also pushing the steem dollar price up. That in addition to many other external and internal factors happening in the broader crypto marketplace has caused a wild fluctuation in the steem dollar away from the peg.