I appreciate your reply and the courtesy with which you made your points. I can tell that you believe you are making the right choice. I respect that.

I also realize the point you made about preparing for what you think is going to be a rush of users (non-Steemit related). I am not privy to those negotiations nor do I have any way of knowing if this will be successful or not. I do hope you know what you are doing and wish you the best!

As regards to Steemit, I think you are running very close to killing it. I don't mean it ceasing to operate, I mean it being used as a general social media platform. If you don't care or have priorities that make that seem like no big deal, then I guess you will continue on your current path. If you do care, then I would highly suggest that you make the "engagement" function so small that people won't notice it even exists. If people find out they are getting blocked from doing anything and they find out that "engaging" is costing them something, then it will be the first thing they jettison. That's just a real world way of life.

I have had many (too many) conversations in the last few days with my friends and even with witnesses. The bottom line is most everyone at this point CARES. If you continue down the "Steemit is only a small part of the picture" path, then that will change faster than you currently realize.

Sometimes people immerse themselves into a world and a feedback loop that gives them answers they ask for, but not necessarily the truth. I think this is one of those times. I urge you and the powers within Steemit to take the time to really ask the mainstream before you test whether or not you really care about whether Steemit users stick around. This is intended as constructive advice, because I'm one of those that do still care at this point.