First of all let's begin with something I wanted to address for a while now. Lately I've been randomly accused of "reward pool rape" and "circle jerking" to maximize my yield here on Hive. This has happened multiple times now, and it's kind of ironic. I built my reputation here years ago posting conspiracy theory and reporting on the police state and military industrial complex. Now that I've "made it" I get accused by those same people that I'm the problem. Pretty funny stuff.
I do not beg for upvotes. I do not vote on posts because those accounts vote for me. I do not follow for follow. I do not control who upvotes my content. I will not limit the content I produce because the network might over-reward me. Get over it.
I will admit that seeing my posts consistently plastered at the top of the trending tab is pretty weird. I don't necessarily think I deserve that, but this isn't really about who deserves what. This network is far more focused on NETWORKING and far less concerned with the magical thinking that is proof-of-brain; an impossible to enforce mystical consensus algorithm that doesn't exist.
Even using the words "reward pool rape" and "circle jerking" are pretty offensive terms that were coined by white straight boys who thought they were clever little nerds. You're not clever: you're an overly-offensive toxic troll who minimizes the suffering of less fortunate groups.
What do you think the term "reward pool rape" sounds like to someone who's actually been sexually assaulted? Like, seriously. You're not important get over it. Stop heinously exaggerating these situations. If you're life is so cushy and soft that the worst thing going on is reward pool abuse on Hive... I don't even know how to finish this sentence.
On a very real level, there is no such thing as reward pool abuse. Downvotes are largely unnecessary and likely cause more harm than they help cut out the cancer on the platform. I ONLY downvote content that is an obvious scam, plagiarism, hate speech, or otherwise blatant corruption. I would never downvote someone because they downvoted me (like a child lashing out) or because I personally disagreed with the message.
I'm not saying I would get rid of free downvotes, but I really think the network needs to be more self-aware of its actions. I've seen users here get flagged off the platform and dump hundreds of thousands of Hive onto the market. Those who issued the flags hurt the network, and they continue self-righteously parading themselves around like saviors of the network. Uh huh, good job, kid. Your internet prowess is so impressive. Again, get over yourself.
This isn't the first time I've called out these overly violent/sexual terms for the childish and toxic over-exaggerations that they are.
Wow, check out that blast from the past. December 27, 2017. This was my 22nd post ever during the first month I joined the platform. I am a shark, and I haven't stopped swimming. I've been building connections for three years non-stop.
I've been accused of writing certain things and taking certain stances to "boost my numbers". Yeah, well, it's all right here on the blockchain. Go back three years and see for yourself. My topics of conversation are consistent. It doesn't matter if my posts pay out 1 cent or $100, I write about the same shit.
It's been mentioned that the only reason I control 210k Hive is because I wormed my way to the top and was gifted my stack by the Hive elite. It takes a single click to reveal otherwise. Both https://hiveblocks.com/@edicted & https://hivestats.io/@edicted will clearly display that I've only earned 32k Hive from posting rewards in the last 3 odd years (which is actually quite a bit). In fact, that number is being boosted from when I was paying for upvotes with TheRealWolf's bid-bot SmartSteem for a couple months.
Less than 16% of my total stack is from blog rewards. It's a shame that the conspiracy theorists on this network can't do simple math. This is an immutable network. These numbers can't be faked. The reason my stack is so large is that I brought a shit ton of value to this network and the people who upvote me know that. Duh.
As someone who has never cashed out a single penny of crypto to my bank account, accusing me of corruption is sure to undermine your own reputation here on the network. I see people here that could be building value and participating in this new economy in a healthy way, but they fall back to blaming others for their own problems. Take some responsibility for your situation.
Again, I would ask, why do you think reward pool abuse exists? It doesn't exist on DEFI networks. Comparatively a yield farm is the exact equivalent of someone on Hive upvoting themselves 100% of the time. Why is that bad? Because you said so? Because the whitepaper said so? You think you can make an argument because Ned wrote some bullshit in a whitepaper and made up a fake consensus algorithm called proof-of-brain? Try again.
Delegated Proof of Stake. If you have the stake you're allowed to use it in anyway you see fit. Those are the rules. People need to change the way they view this network because many don't understand what's going on here.
How many users around here thought that 8% inflation was too high and we needed to reduce it? WRONG. I've already detailed why this is wrong multiple times. INVESTORS WANT HIGHER INFLATION. Now that DeFi yield farming is fucking killing it, this is basically incontrovertible evidence that I'm right. There are defi networks at 1000%+ inflation who are absolutely destroying Hive in terms of token price action. It's not about how much inflation there is: it's about who controls it.
No matter what the Bitcoin maximalists are spouting about how great their deflationary asset is: I know the truth. Inflation is the killer dapp and I will drink the sweet milk of their tears as those greedy assholes watch in horror as their precious Bitcoin descends the ranks of the market cap. Cry more, scarcity capitalists. I'm so sorry for you that your stacks are only doubling every year while some of these other projects gain even more. Seriously, the entitlement I see surrounding the cryptosphere is unfathomable. Evolve or become irrelevant.
Do I sound heated or angry right now? I'm not. I'm not under attack, and I don't need to defend myself. There are gnats buzzing around and they are kind of annoying, but hey gnats must be a valuable part of the ecosystem in some way or another, right? Not my place to judge.
There's a reason I don't name names even after being accused of these things: I want everyone on this network to succeed. I want everyone here to be paid a living wage so they can stop being sucked dry by the time vampires. I want millions of full-time employees that choose their own hours, don't have to answer to an abusive boss, and are paid by merit rather than time spent.
That's obviously not going to happen via the tiny amount of value we bring to the table with the blogging frontend. We need more jobs and we need jobs that aren't ruled by subjective opinion. Easier said than done. I have some ideas but these things take time, money, organization, and overhead cost. I'm just one person.
And it is nothing but spectacular. What an adventure we have in store for us over the next ten years. Stormclouds are gathering, but life sure would be a lot more boring if the water was always calm. What is the point of this existence if everything just stays stable and stagnant? Chaos is a requirement for evolution, and I see myself as an agent of chaos at this point.
Riding these waves of uncertainty will not be easy, but to the victor goes the spoils, as they say. I think we all got here early enough to make it, but I'm extremely worried about anyone who FOMOs in during the peak of this next mega-bubble and gets absolutely wrecked. I think we are all personally responsible to mitigate those damages rather than buying Lambos and flaunting the wealth that was sapped away from the suckers.
But hey, these are permissionless networks, so if people want to run like the greedy assholes that they are: we can't stop them. Just be warned: the blockchain is watching. Reputation matters more than money. Those who choose poorly will miss out on the next wave.
