I've had big accounts messaging me about proposal voting, but I make my own decisions. Yes, Blocktrades is big and will earn well from curation, but he's not posting much. Others can keep earning from that and build their HP to increase their influence.

Voting for witnesses and proposals does matter and we should take it seriously.

I've met Blocktrades and his other half. They are nice people and I think they really care about Hive. I would trust them to do the right things, but opinions on those will vary.