Well, the first thing you need to know about STEEM is that its blockchain is a DPoS (Delegated Proof of Stake) system. This means that the when it comes to voting for stuff, the governance of the entire blockchain and changes made to it is contingent upon the stakeholders in the blockchain. That's a really simple "cliffnotes" explanation (since there are many types of DPoS protocols), but essentially it means this; those who help run the blockchain can control the direction things go.
In this case, they implemented a soft fork to prevent one of the largest token holders from voting. That's a big deal. a HUGE deal. And furthermore, it really shows the power of decentralized governance. In some regular ass corporation, you have the folks at the top. They say, "hey, fuck you, this is what we and the board members have decided is best for the shareholders, and this is what we are doing." Imagine for a moment that instead of a board of corporation members, EVERYONE got to throw their shit in the ring, dicks in hand. In a system of decentralized governance, the major players are not the only ones in town. I personally think that's awesome, given the current zeitgeist and how corporations have been considered historically. But, I am willing to be wrong here.
Justin Sun, in response to the really fun times, basically said that he takes the input of the community seriously, and wants to set up a town hall meeting with the top 50 witnesses on March 6th. This could be a good thing, because the biggest word in FUD that can be applied to the current state of Steemit is Uncertainty. If you're a member of the Steemit community and you like how Steemit is run, then I'll bet that is the biggest word for you right now.
I'm a Steemian myself now, newly minted this month. I honestly have enjoyed my experience so far. The community is supportive, and the system is really interesting. It has been a challenge to learn how to post, how to vote/upvote, and how to generally become an up and coming member. I love it, and I personally don't want to see it go away. I'm torn on Justin's response; on one hand, I know what the man is capable of (See the Binance Debacle I wrote about).