HAVE WE REACHED THE DEATH OF STEEMIT?

Perhaps there has been more doom and gloom around here lately, but let's be honest.

Through thick and thin here on steemit over the past 2+ years Hive account@papa-pepper has been able to maintain a certain positive, optimistic attitude. So, when I look around at the incredible loss of users, the drop in value of STEEM, and the recent HF20 aftermath, how do I process it and what is my honest evaluation?

THE DEATH OF STEEMIT, OR JUST ANOTHER PURGE?

As many of you may have suspected, I have not lost hope in the least. Sure, HF20 could have went better, but the community and platform will continue. Anytime a mess like that happens some people will lose hope, just like when the value of STEEM drops.

At such times, many will abandon ship, only to return when the increase in value returns. It is times like these that periodical "purges" happen. The "come for the quick cash - bail on the community" type will quickly move on and lose interest. It's happened before and it'll happen again. Interestingly enough, many of those who bail at such times and return when things get better are often the first to bail out next time too.

It's much like the difference between people who get divorced and remarried when things get hard, only to repeat the process the next time things get rough. Others, who make it past the "rough seas" in their marriage come out all the stronger because of it, and are able to maintain a lasting relationship.

So, what's my point? My point is simple. In my opinion, many of us long-term steemians have been through worse here already. Hopefully, we won't have to go through even worse in the future, but we have made it this far. STEEM being below one dollar is much better than STEEM being below a dime. If now is the time for many steemians to bail, then those who remain will be all the more tight-knit and bonded together. It's times like these that the real community will shine through, and my belief is that we will be able to experience even brighter days ahead, while others will be long gone. In typical Hive account@papa-pepper style, I'll be right here, doing what I do.