Yes, I mean commenting - just commenting (which is actually the first question in your article).

No, we’ve rarely had personal contact. But of course I know you, especially from way back. Naturally, I’m also aware of all the things you’ve done and developed for Steem. You don’t have to keep pointing that out. Plus, you already have enough users constantly highlighting that for you.

Well, I too have invested a lot of money in Steem. However, I was never interested in a big ROI. Until the end, I held on to the idealistic (or rather foolish, foolish, foolish?) notion of using my relatively large stake to support the posts that I genuinely liked, or where someone clearly put in effort. Not to mention all the “educational” attempts to explain to users why it’s important to build their own stake and use it to give back to the community.

I won’t discuss the pros and cons of all the “modern” innovations with you. That’s been done a thousand times, and I’m tired. So very tired.
Just this much: Every bit of automation kills creativity. Some - even among your formerly very creative and communicative moderators - have no hesitation in settling down the moment they’ve secured their catch (ha, another fitting fish metaphor).

To comment “properly,” you first have to find a post that actually interests you, that makes you want to engage, that inspires a response. Posts like that still sporadically exist. But how long do you expect an interested reader to search through all the fast-fire content, spam, scams, and blah blah blah? No chance. The audience you're trying to reach is no longer here.

When I referred to the “smelly fish,” I didn’t mean you personally but rather all the “influencers.” How are users supposed to learn how Steem originally worked if all those who still remember act completely differently now?
As a teacher, I can tell you: the only thing that works is “show, then follow.” Unfortunately, this applies to everything influencers demonstrate (or don’t).

Have a lovely Sunday!