If on the other hand Steem focuses on building actual utility then there will be real value behind the Steem token beyond speculative.

That, in my opinion, is the sticking point, whether or not there are enough people who truly care about the continued utility, as you do, to overcome the people merely here to speculate and who will use whatever means they can (bot armies, etc) to milk it for everything they can before moving on to the next "opportunity", leaving behind them a virtual strip mine.

These are the Wild West days of cryptocurrency, only time will tell which platforms will stand the test of time.