It's sort of obvious that stake wins at all cost, even to those committed to producing quality content because in the end it all effects the reward pool.  There's so many follies involved it's hard to discern the difference sometimes, even some who write quality content have a sock who isn't...so there's that.  

Herein lies the problem over the long run though and that's cutting into the rewards earned to try and get a handle on one problem while simultaneously ignoring the same problem from some because they hold stake....and by doing so it will serve to engorge the other half engaged in the same behavior.  In all due honestly I don't see any legal argument for that being the answer.  The problem is they have been making their own rules unregulated for the last couple years and getting away with it that it has embolden them to think they can continue on this path.  Eventually it's going to catch up to them, maybe this hardfolk 21 will serve as the much needed wake up call they will need because now according to yourself, as a dolphin, you are going to wake up practically worthless....though you may not do anything about it there may be plenty of others who finally will because those people also have significant weight in the game.  One guy wrote that a post will now have to be worth sixteen steem, equivalent to a three dollar post to get their reward....now I don't know if that's true but lets just assume he is right.  Now we aren't talking about one or two cents here we're talking about three bucks, name any company in this world where someone earns three bucks and someone else has a right to take that from them....it just doesn't exist, if true it's pushing the boundaries.  Just think about that for a minute....three bucks is almost half of the federal minimum wage  in this country....they don't let restaurant owners or agricultural workers get shammed...if a waitress doesn't make the federal min. wage in tips the  owner has to make up the rest, a farmer can pay per bushel picked but the amount that can be picked in a hour has to equal the federal min. wage.  The point being if the owner of a restaurant or a farmer just says you are just plain shit out of luck because you didn't make min. wage that doesn't cut it....if they are cut by say three bucks that's taken seriously....yes three bucks is all it's takes for the feds to come down and say they worked for it, they earned it, now you have to give it to them.  Even though this site is not an employer the fact still remains is those people made three bucks and someone else took it.  It just doesn't work like that, you just can't say to people if you write you can earn then take it, it's as plain as the nose on one's face.  If this is all true it surely is pushing the boundaries, given the stake involved this time and whom stands to lose quite a bit, it may just be the catalyst that will bring federal regulators down looking at the operation of the platform....and I highly doubt they are going to fall for "well some people paid in to abuse the platform while others didn't"....nah, that's not going to fly.