We all know the debate going on about Steemit Inc and the potential hard fork. That is an on-going discussion, one which will not be taken up here.
What is overlooked in all of this is something @reggaemuffin brought up in a recent post.
What happens if Steemit Inc suddenly exits?
While this might make some people happy, it could create a nightmare for the blockchain, at least in the short term. Therefore, it is vital that steps are taken to alleviate the impact.
After all, worst case scenario thinking is a good exercise to plan for.
In the post set forth, I think a viable plan was put together. This is an instance where one person is taking the initiative to get things rolling but it is a community effort. One or two people cannot make this fly.
Steemians got into the habit of sitting back and watching the world go by. People absolved themselves of the responsibility for what takes place on here. The last Hard Fork proved that. Since that time, the community appears to be a bit more active in terms of it's interest in what is taking place.
It is time to step it up another notch or two.
The thinking, as it is outlined now, is a multi-tier system:
Planners - these are the ones responsible for creating a road map for the Steem blockchain. This will include developers who do not have a say in what takes place as it stands now.
Communicators - This prevents the Planners from being out of touch. It also ensures that all Steemians have access to the information discussed. For a world that prides itself on transparency, a lot of things take place on here outside the spotlight.
Alice - This is what is termed the Housekeepers (Alice was the housekeeper on the Brady Bunch for those who missed it). They are responsible for ensuring that things stay on track and do not fall through the cracks.
The thoughts of Reggaemuffin are that this all takes place before the coding begins. It is a community wide planning session to determine where we see the future of Steem going. Hopefully, this will alleviate a great deal of the disconnect we witnessed thus far.
Please bear in mind, this is not taking place in a centralized manner. The goal is to further decentralize Steem. Presently, all the "planning" in in the hands of a few. The community really has no say in it. Will it change without something radical taking place? I do not know. If, however, Steemit Inc disappears from some reason, it is best to have a back up plan.
Here are a few other ideas tossed on the table:
- Create a Steem Improvement Proposal structure where the community can propose and discuss changes that can later be funded for development.
- Create a Development Fund for Steem, maybe in cooperation with initiatives like @utopian-io or the seeminly abandoned @steemtank.
- Find capable developers inside and outside of Steem and give them an opportunity to improve Steem.
- Increase transparency by making all discussion public, moving away from secret slacks into the blockchain and an open for all github organization.
- Give the small fish a voice by ensuring that everyone is informed about all proposals and changes so that more people can join the informed discussion.
- Make Steem the blockchain move away from Steemit Inc. as the sole driver of success and decouple steemit.com from Steem via a decentralized community.
@reggaemuffin/let-us-the-community-take-steem-governance-into-our-own-hands
Blockchain governance is an important step. This is something that the entire industry is going to have to work on. Blockchain is the entry into anarchy. By moving away from the centralized framework we are also creating a governance void. This is something that needs to be resolved, not only for blockchain but for the sake of all of humanity.
Personally, it would be ideal if our governance situation was resolved with Steemit Inc involved. I do not know what their intentions are but a harmonious solution is always preferred. Nevertheless, the community cannot depend upon Steemit Inc forever. At some point, we need to stand up and present a better method.
Perhaps we are not to this point. Nevertheless, it is not too early to formulate ideas and work towards self-governance. It is the only way to be truly decentralized. Of course, without a governance model, we risk having chaos.
I am throwing my hat into the ring here and will help with this endeavor where I can. It is a sensible idea and a way to protect ourselves going forward. With or without Steemit Inc, the community has to be responsible for itself.
It is something that was overlooked up until this point.
There is another idea that is being tossed out that I have not looked into but feel it fits into this post. It was put forth by @lukestokes and is based upon EOSDAC token and the governance method that goes along with it.
@lukestokes/steemdac-a-plan-we-can-start-today-to-decentralize-steem-governance
Give it a look.
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