Thank you for this article. I think, the technical side of steem is very clear - I agree that it is currently the technically most advanced, safest and most user-friendly crypto currency around.
Looking at steemit, I love the concept and it provides a great use-case for steem. Use-cases are what effectively brings value to a crypto currency.
Upvoting the own account is a double sided sword I think. On the one hand side it gives investors the possibility to get a return on their investment - this is why they buy steem, power up and bring up the price of steem. On the other hand it reduced the reward potential for content producers which have no own money - which is bad for the development of steemit and thus negative for the value of steem.
Over time this problem should decrease however. The inflation of steem will go down, this will reduce the ROI for investors that are their to upvote their own accounts. Flagging - as negative as it is if you receive them - does in my view help as a regulator. However, it should be concentrated on the large accounts which really make a difference as a widespread automated flagging campaign would demotivate the newcomers.
I agree.