Hi @angelacs - thanks for the thoughtful reply! I agree: if the intent of the league is to simply get up to 500 SP quick, then purchases should definitely be included. Thanks for clarifying @paulag's intent.
I suppose there's a few ways of looking at Steemit: as an investment vehicle, as a social media/blog platform, some sort of hybrid, or something else. It probably depends much on what drew you to Steemit in the first place and what you expect out of it. Personally, I was attracted to Steemit by the possibility of building something from nothing though hard work and quality posts, as per the Steemit tagline:
"Authors get paid when people like you upvote their post. If you enjoyed what you read here, create your account today and start earning FREE STEEM!"
That's what drew me here: the possibility that quality posts will be rewarded and with hard work I would succeed in the platform. And while there would be time invested, this could be possible at no cost. If I was good. And patient :)
Now that I'm here, I'm aware there's a lot more going on ;) Flag wars, bit bots, spammers, opportunists, etc. But I remain on the platform because at the end of the day I'm hopeful that quality content will win the day, and that authors and curators will be rewarded for it. I guess we'll see. I'm patient and I'm in it for the long haul. I'll be here for years and I'm planning on converting all earned SBD and Steem to SP to grow my account to have more influence and be able to help beginners, maybe run some contests or leagues of my own in the future :)
Sure, I can plop down 500 SP at any time, but for me, because of how I see the platform, that wouldn't be as interesting of a story as growing organically. I don't believe buying SP equates with more commitment or buy-in to the platform. I think there's a strong counter argument that those who wish to thrive mostly through content creation or curation are adding more value to the platform as a whole than those who simply buy in. But I suspect most folks fall somewhere in the middle. I suppose we can ask - I wonder how many people have used fiat to purchase SP vs. how many have never done so?
I'm also filtering by my life experience: I've lived most of my adult life outside of my home country doing humanitarian work in desperately poor countries. One of the most exciting possibilities of a platform like Steemit is that in theory those with little to no resources can begin to better their lives. I just read that 50% of the world's population now have access to the internet. If they're on the internet, they can have a Steemit account and theoretically open another income stream to help themselves, their families, and their communities. Even if this takes years to happen, the mere possibilities these days give me hope. Exciting times!
Anyway, thanks again for the comment! It's a good discussion and always interesting to see how others experience Steemit!
Cheers,
@eoj