Steem is the better currency to couple with mass adoption
As a businessman who has worked with many other business people in my life, I can tell you that a volatile currency is not the "better" currency for mass adoption - if your goal is to have this currency actually adopted as a currency. A peg to a native currency (and let's face it - there likely aren't going to be many crypto-only businesses any time in the near future) allows normal business owners to onboard with STEEM/SBDs for their goods/services without the need to monitor fluctuating prices of both STEEM and BTC, relative to their native currency.
So, if the idea is to get people to actually spend and receive STEEM/SBDs as payment, then having that SBD-Dollar peg will be much more attractive for those individuals.
STEEM may be better for mass adoption for the social media and investing part of the equation, but SBDs are better for mass adoption for the actual use of the currency as a payment option.
When I think of a peg, I think of Argentina, or Greece. Are there examples of successful pegs?
Nothing Tether or another pegged digital asset cant do if that's what you truly believe.
Steem is the better community vehicle ---- and overtime with increased liquidity it's good for payments. Case in point, I personally use bitcoin often for payments (because of its liquidity and contractors willingness to accept).
I agree with @ats-david on this point. Much easier to do the books and price things, making it easier to adopt. Easier to explain to noobs and merchants too. Stability in a token is a great benefit and selling point as well.
I like it a lot and think it helps steemit s a whole. I'm not sure why we're even discussing removing it. Why is SBD in the whitepaper to begin with? There must have been some benefit behind it and how has that changed today? Is it a liability in some way and, if so, to whom?