The Amway analogy is interesting. Amway was selling a product, the Amway product. Here, I would say that what is being sold are authors and not the Steemit platform. So, I highly doubt that Steemit will end up like Amway. Where does the concern about whales destroying minows come from? Who was arbitrarily and unfairly destroyed by a capricious whale?
RE: Steemfest - A skeptics' view - The dangers of GROUPTHINK etc