Nearly two weeks ago I started voting with my freshly acquired portion of PAL tokens. The reason I set my goal at 15000 PAL was that based on my first votes that would generate 10 PAL with a 100% vote at near full voting power. With the 50/50 curating split that was for me an appealing number to play around with.
Actually, I thought it was rather a lot and therefore started thinking about how to use that voting power in a balanced way. And with balanced I mean that voting decision ideally would not only be based on the me-portion of the 50/50 curation split, but on the effect it could have on the one voted on as well.
Now, two weeks later, it is becoming clear that my first impression of the impact I could have on the platform, was a bit exaggerated. Based on my latest vote, the effect of my stake is neatly halved: 5 PAL for a 100% vote at near full voting power. Actually, it is a bit more, but for comparison's sake, I calculated it as if I still had 15000 PAL staked.
The halved effect of my voting is on the one hand a bit of a disappointment. The estimation I made two week ago of the amount of PAL I could have staked at the end of the year turns out to be a bit optimistic (to say the least). On the other hand, I perceive it as a blessing as well. Because of the lessened effect of my vote I don't feel as strongly the need to take the effect of voting on the whole of the community in consideration. And I feel more the freedom to just vote what I like, even if that means a fully egocentric decision.
The interesting question is of course what causes this halving in just two weeks. Is it the intended inflation of the reward pool? Or is it the consequence of more people joining PalNET and earning PAL? In other words, does the growth of total staked PAL also mean a dimished return of a vote per staked PAL? I think the answer to the last queston is yes. The effect I see is more the effect of dilution than the effect of inflation. However, I'm not versed in the underlying mechanisms of cryptocurrency in general and Steem/PAL in particular. If I'm wrong, someone will no doubt correct me.
