In most cases, the owners refused to do much of anything to help clean up the mess. Many, not only wouldn't remove votes but also didn't even bother to use the blacklists. The community begged, asked and yelled for change.

Yet, only a few operators (who knew the 50/50 split were coming) prepared for this well. The fact that I perceive this all as "reactionary" instead of proactive makes me feel better holding my Steem in my own hands and delegating to things where I personally know the stakeholders involved.

The following remarks are musings of a general nature:

With the Steem Proposal system in full effect as well, it is even more important to know what you're doing with your own Steem power. If you see a proposal get up that you don't want to support, then don't delegate SP to people who support those proposals.

Steem got a lot more complicated econimically, but I am already seeing the impact on the trending page. My down vote is doing my part, and I don't see it as a down vote, I see it as a way of rewarding every other author but the one I'm down voting.

Others need to see it that way as well. It isn't an attack on that individual author or article, it is a gift to the rest of the chain.