I agree in general. I like the way the Chinese Steem community have handled the situation, with so many bilingual posts which are actually interesting to a Western audience.
But from a user experience perspective, it is a matter of requiring changed behaviour on the part of the user, which does not tend to be successful. The other issue is momentum. 5 years down the line Steem could have great solutions for language barriers but have lost momentum vs. alts that arose to address a market demand. But on balance, I more agree with you than disagree.