"but there is one point I can't see my way to agreeing with: that one person's vote ought to count more than another's"
Well, Communism is that way, then ---->
I don't think you (mean to be) advocating for neutering the concept of stake, but this is literally the defining feature of Steem. One person's vote will always count more than another's.
I know it as direct democracy. Call it what you like, but I don't believe that an elite ought to determine what a community eventually becomes.