You don't have to try and build the oligarchy or the cronyism - It's fundamentally here, and coded into to the structure that is steem (....and the rewards pool inflation mechanism).
Non meritocratic systems are doomed to failure, long term.
I understand that's not your goal, but ignoring the reality of the ecosystem we are in, doesn't change the reality of the situation.
Yeah yeah. Just take responsibility for your own actions and don't be scared.