I'm not going to pretend I know anything about financial complexities - I don't. What I do know is Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Pinterest and the like don't pay out.
What I have seen from my infrequent checks on the exchanges is that a lot of Steem was dropped onto the market at just under a dollar and the price started dropping too.
Now, if 1 million steem dropped onto the market at a $ and the price goes down to 25c then the whales that made a million by selling at the high price can now gobble up 4 million Steem for the same $1 million and the price will rise - therein is a massive profit for a few weeks patience.
Those guys have the titanium balls to gamble like that and the money to do it. Fair play to them, but I know one more thing. If that happens, then my $2000Steem will then be worth $8000 so who wins?
Everyone that has the patience to stick around, that's who!
I think there will be some of the buy back like you say. Some whales probably pulled some out and are sitting in BTC or SBD and will power back up at lower prices and take the bet that they will become God Kings!
I understand your argument that Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and Pinterest don't pay out. That is a legit argument for people who spend time on those platforms. I don't spend anytime on any of those platforms. I spend time on YouTube and I get paid there. A big reason why I devoted so much time on Steemit is to build a big following and be in that top handful of content creators on here who could make a full time living on this.
Unfortunately Steemit's reward system is so skewed and has nothing to do with the quality of content in most cases. That is very frustrating. All I would ask for is $100 liquid each day. $200 total payout across 4 potential posts and I could spend full time on here. But when I spend 5 hours on a post and get paid $0.36. You can bet that I'm upset. That was a huge reason why Steve got so upset. I have been on here for over 3 months making solid content and building a following and my upvote is worth $0.01. That is an issue. So at that rate if I put in a full time effort my upvote will be worth $0.20 in 5 years. It is a tough pill to swallow.
I really hope the best for Steemit but if there can't be a way for good content creators with no prior connections to the whales to get on here and make a full time living off this then there is an issue.
Ned and Dan's actions of continuing to power down when everyone is freaking out doesn't make anyone feel good. They have pulled enough money to buy a super car and live the dream. That's cool. Now if they believe in this thing they should stop their power downs at the very least.
It's a peculiar and disturbing process that I go through every so often, I think this is the 4th time in my 2 months (my 2 month anniversary was yesterday), I get a very black mood, and start to think I'm gonna throw in the towel, and then something happens. In this case, after my previous post about starting a Steem Developer Hub in Amsterdam, some people made connections and are now doing the research and networking to make it happen, and I realised and remembered again that this is how it is supposed to be, and what looks bad on the surface has little gems crystallising inside it.
I go through similar moods. For me the thing to remember is that asset prices tend to move in waves, not straight lines. Testing the lows of an asset is important for assessing its value, which would seem especially important if the asset is a brand new framework like Steem. But also everything you said :)
"I get a very black mood, and start to think I'm gonna throw in the towel, and then something happens."
Wonderful! I'm happy for you that your ideas are getting through and will be making a difference soon. Looking forward to SteemFest so I can meet lots of interesting and innovative people like you :)