It's definitely not 'fair', but Steemit still has opportunities for all. You just have to decide how you want to play it and if you care about what others think of you. I'm on the long stretch from rep 70 to 71. I may get there this year, but I should pass 4000 followers soon. Not that many of those are active or seeing what I do. I get enough interaction to keep me happy.
I could make more money by gaming the system, but I'm happy to make anything. I'm in for the long run.
I agree, at this point I prefer to have better interaction than payouts.