Thanks for the lengthy response, Rowan. I, like you, make an humble living with my craft. I came to Steemit with a hope, but that hope dwindles with each bidbot that grows another 1,000 SP. It's not problem of ability. The issue is will. There simply isn't a will to fix the issue, and when you can increase your own purse by taking the easy way out, why not? Especially if the alternative is more time intensive, slower, and with less of a guarantee. Get a little now vs. hold out for a lot later--most people will opt for the bird in the bush. Human nature, I guess. But it doesn't make it right. We have to make a concerted effort to overcome our nature.

I think Steem has two paths forward. Full steam ahead (no pun intended) and let the bots rule, in which case it will just become a passive income vehicle for those who see it as such, or become yesteryear's experiment.