I promised @lordbutterfly that I would write a post about Steem in an ironic fashion. This could also further upset @isnochys index if it ever takes off. Although the chance of that is slim to none. But anyways, here is a story.

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Driving down the I-15 on a regular basis, I have noticed many different billboards along the way. Sometimes, I even use them as landmarks to help me locate where I am.

One of the more quirky ads are those from Domo Inc. Some of you may have heard of the company, but most people living in Utah have seen their signs. Amusing or not, they know their target audience when it comes to references.

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The other day, I read this editorial and I thought it was the funniest thing. Why? Because I had no idea what Domo does as a business for the longest time. The number one reason was that I did not care enough to look it up. The number two reason was I still had no idea after reading Wikipedia. It doesn't get any better after I visit their website either. It's a lot to take in. I would imagine only someone on the "ins" would know better.

It's apparent that this sentiment is not good for its stock prices. Its 52-week range is between $13.28 and $47.08 and trading at $17.56 today. Sure, it's oversold, but where's the value outside of speculation?

What does this has to do with Steem?

Well, when it comes down to it, what is Steem? If you were to tell a friend, or a stranger, about this complex network, what would you say?

Is it a blogging platform for content creators in the most textual or visual/audio sense?

Is it a business network where "entrepreneurs" gather and be successful together? Points for understanding this reference.

Is it a crowd funding opportunity for the likes of @dlive?

Is a pyramid scheme where STINC and the early miners extract funds from idiots like us who bought in?

A place for games? Gambling dapps?

Or is this place a "shitpost haven" for those to gain extra pocket cash to invest in other meaningful things?

I'm sure many of you have seen other @whatsup's writings and pondered to yourself, what is the vision? If you haven't, you might want to take some time to think about it.

The lack of a clear definition of what the platform is, does, or will be is no different than the conundrum with Domo.

New Steem

The campaign is live and well. However, the most recent hard forks are only the beginning. This is an ongoing process. Consensus made changes to the economic incentives and added ways to fund development. The actual change to the ecosystem has yet to materialize. That is where you, the stakeholders, come in.

There could be so many directions and visions. Unfortunately, not all stakeholders would agree with them. Can they all coexist? Or is that an impossibility?

You can either view Steem as the Wild West and claim your rightful influence (stake). With your influence, you can effect the change you want to see. Or, we can all give up knowing the gridlock between stakeholders would end in stagnation and a slow death.

What is it right now?

On Coinbase:

> Steem is a cryptocurrency built for social and content-based blockchain applications like Steemit. Third-party developers can leverage Steem for distributed content management and autonomous token distribution. Transactions on Steem are processed in ~3 seconds without fees.

Does that describe our current situation? Is that the vision? If so, how does the community want things to run? If not, is it only a script of STINC's vision?

But, what is Steem to you?

That is the most important question.

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A blogging platform (29.03%) 9 / 31 I have no idea what the hell Steem is (12.9%) 4 / 31 Other (please specify) (12.9%) 4 / 31 Whatever Steemit Inc. vision, or lack thereof, is (9.68%) 3 / 31 A circlejerk haven for whales and those who join @backscratcher (9.68%) 3 / 31 A strange gathering place for those who believe in alternative facts/realities (9.68%) 3 / 31 A Ponzi scheme (6.45%) 2 / 31 A hipster's underground for content that wouldn't do much on mainstream media (6.45%) 2 / 31 A centralized network ran by @aggroed and friends (3.23%) 1 / 31