It's an interesting situation, for sure. I was talking with a new user a bit ago who thought Steemit was likely to become a trap for amateur writers who would create an aura of legitimacy by creating increasingly good posts, but celebrities like Oprah would come and rake in everything. This person was afraid to ask the question. I'm glad to see it being asked.

It's not negative to point out that the status quo is far away from stated goals. I'm upvoting and betting that this doesn't get downvotes. If it does, you have more of a point than I've given you credit for.