Thanks @benjojo for sharing this perspective.

In a sense, it seems like elfspice's ambitious project really is-- as much as anything-- a "wake-up call" to the Steemit community: We need to pay a little less attention to just griping about what's wrong, and actually start tending our garden here... rather than look around for "greener pastures."

Slightly related/slightly tangential, I don't know if you caught @timcliff's piece from a couple of days ago... the subtext of which was that a lot of people here seem like they are "sitting around, waiting for something to happen;" when, in all truth, WE are the ones who need to make things happen. In a sense, perhaps elfspice was inadvertently responding to that sensation that Steemit seems a little bit in the doldrums.

As I said, it's only "somewhat" related, but if you're interested in Tim's post, it's here: https://steemit.com/condenser/@timcliff/calling-community-developers-let-s-polish-the-steemit-com-mothership

Personally, I would maintain that part of our "issue" here is that there seems to be very little in the way of a cohesive long-term plan. Sure, there's the White Paper, and there's the "road map" but these read more like a series of "course corrections" than a cohesive vision... which may be one of the challenges/limitations of a decentralized project... there's no central repository, just a swirling cloud of ideas. I keep thinking of a situation where everyone knows (and agrees) that "we need to paint the house" but without planning, 43 people go to the paint store and come back with 43 colors of paint and an array of brushes and rollers many of which are not even suitable.... and then people end up butthurt because THEIR version isn't what's chosen. But I am no expert on that... and I'm barely out of minnowhood, in a Steemit context.