Tough call. SDB being higher in value than Steem attracts new authors who see the benefit of not just s#itposting like a tool. Granted, Things like leasing steam delegation would still be useful, but not nearly as rewarding for new users of Steem (like myself, despite my join date) if buying Steem power delegation only gets a fraction of the benefits that it does now. Is this the cause of SDB increasing in value? no, as you can lease delegated steam power using Steem or even other coins just as easy.
I don't see the downside of a higher priced steem dollar whatsoever, as it promotes healthy participation (as long as people spamming plagiarized content 24/7 don't get any rewards), and not just the speculative types hoping for the price of Steem itself to go up. You want Steem to be low in value to get people to lock into Steem Power, and thereby participate on some level with the platform and build up the quality instead of quantity of users.