Steem: Virtual Government
At it's core, Steem is nothing more than a blockchain that stores text. However, all blockchains have rules, and these rules are decided in a decentralized manner. POW coins give power to miners; they validate the network. POS coins give power to stake holders; they also validate the network. DPOS coins are akin to a republic in which we vote for the representatives that validate the network. That is what Steem is: a republic. Social media is a microscopic sliver of what this blockchain is capable of.
Considering that just about every government in existence is a republic you'd think this would be obvious. Unfortunately, the establishment brainwashes us on a daily basis to believe in things like democracy, communism, and socialism. These are nothing words that have been crafted by the elite to trick you into believing in something that doesn't exist. They don't want you to know the truth: Money rules the world. It's as simple as that.
Even Steemit Inc tries to lie straight to your face and claim that money doesn't rule this platform. Do you believe them? Do you think that proof-of-brain is actually a thing? I hope not. At the same time I hope to make proof-of-brain more of a thing. Proof-of-brain is the ultimate (probably unattainable) goal, not the reality.
You might try to make the argument that Steem, and crypto in general, is not decentralized enough, and you would be correct, but that doesn't matter. It is still decentralized.
Who controls the Federal Reserve? This is a self-answering question. The Federal Reserve controls the Federal Reserve. Who controls Steem? Anyone with coins. And we've set up a system where anyone with coins can tip inflation to users that don't have many. This is revolutionary, albeit currently primitive and full of flaws. Regardless, it's still 1000 times better than the deal we're being offered by the country that's supposed to protect us from harm.
When I see someone reduce this glorious blockchain down to basic-bitch social media I just don't even know what to do. In a sense, they are right, because much of the functionality I talk about doesn't even exist yet. Hopes and dreams. Soon™. You either believe it or you don't. Have some faith, Steemians.
Security
When you see a post on social media, how sure can you be that the post was authored by the account owner? Even if the account gets hacked, it's often very easy to tell because the content of the message will be a scam or advertisement. My point here is, we assume that a post can only be authored by a person that knows the password to the account. This notion is a false one.
https://www.businessinsider.com/reddit-ceo-steve-huffman-modifies-donald-trump-the-donald-2016-11
On Wednesday afternoon, members of "The_Donald" noticed that their posts had changed without their knowledge or consent: Instead of referencing Huffman himself, the posts now hurled the same expletives at the moderators of the "The_Donald" community.
As Reddit has so perfectly demonstrated, anyone that has access to the centralized database can post/edit content using any username they so desire.
How is this different from Steem? Not only are posting keys unhackable by brute force, but no one controls our keys but us. The only way to post to the blockchain with an account is to sign transactions using that account's private key. Not even Steemit Inc, the company that gave you the password in the first place, knows what your password is. This fact has revolutionary benefits that we have not even begun to understand, but I intend to figure it out.
Conclusion
Steem is a government that we own through stake. Unlike in the real world, the opportunity to actually create change is a real possibility for us. Have you ever wondered why so many people make a big deal about voting? Your voice matters? Rock the vote?
Your voice doesn't matter. The only reason the establishment wants you to vote is because they think you'll vote for their guy. More importantly, getting people to vote validates the broken system. The elite is able to stay in control by convincing the population that change can happen by participating in government. From my point of view, this is a laughable notion. You are not Entitled To Your Opinion.
I have NEVER voted in any election. I will not validate the vipers that enslave me. Voting for witnesses on the Steem blockchain was a big deal for me. Even though Steemit Inc mostly controls the platform, they will have to relinquish control if they actually want to gain value.
Also, never before has it been so easy to simply fork a government. The threat of a fork and the financial benefit of decentralization are more than enough reason to support the governance model of the Steem blockchain. This is even more relevant when you consider that Steemit Inc is doing 99% of the work when it comes to upgrading the blockchain.
This will not always be the case.
The future belongs to the people. The war against slavery can be won with a single blockchain, but true victory will be achieved with many. This is the nature of decentralization.