Hi Josh!

for the firehose problem check out https://beta.chainbb.com/
it is a different interface for Steemit.com but is on the same blockchain so posts are equally visible on both, BUT the forum style allows you to easier browse by topic! (Note that comments here help you to rise to the top, yet another reason to generate better comments!)

I totally get that being rewarded for something you would have made spontaneously can backfire.
But it is something I want to experiment with, it can be demotivating for people who put in honest effort on their posts not to see a good return on investment.

Winning a prize incentivizes (I hope) people to take their time to think it through. I think there is some tinkering to be done with the incentive structure of Steemit.com

The upvote only can be a perverse incentive for people to play a short game by piling on the posts by popular authors in the hope for curation rewards.

I think comments are seriously undervalued on steemit, and I want to see if I can generate WIN-WIN situations that help new members who don't have massive steempower yet and at the same time raise my own Steempower quickly.

I believe in Steemit.com, it has a great exponential growth curve ahead and I want to be as high up sa possible to ride that growth so I am experimenting to boost visibility and growth, giving up short term SBD gain.

By sharing ALL my SBD share, I also hope to show that I am playing a long game, it is not a speculative move to make some quick bucks.
What do you think?