Greetings dear friend @mindtrap
I agree with you when you say that HF is about better distribution. Obviously you refer to the new 50% / 50%.
This new aspect was not received positively when it was announced before the HF. But the positive results have managed to reverse this opinion.
Better curation rewards for everyone, less abuse, better author rewards for those that maintain a standard / decent quality on their posts etc.
Certainly manual upvoting have increased. This is benefiting both authors and curators. I think this is the goal, well thought out!
SP holders must use it, use it constantly. Search quality publications and to cure. We must distribute better. That would be our new role in this game called Steemit.
All best, Piotr.