The minnows can help each other by upvoting good content. A lot of upvotes will get a post into the "hot" tab, where someone with more power can increase the payout. And of course if you have upvoted before the whales, you get a curation award.
For an explanation of how the tabs work, see https://steemit.com/steemit/@candy49/explaining-the-tabs-on-the-top-right-hand-corner
Yes if the minnows were just willing to come together they could make a huge difference instead of whining about it and trying to kill the people who give the most money on an upvote