Wow, just Wow!
You've just given us all an effective Bitcoin primer, while schooling someone else.
I have to wonder if he's just trying to cash in on the publicity by raising a ruckus? Yes, it caught him off-guard and now he's jumping into it with both feet...planted firmly in his mouth.
I liken the miners as something akin to "freelance network admins"; i.e. they're supplying and maintaining the rigs used to run the blockchain.
Is this close?