I agree that there's plenty of blame to go around. The marketing by users to others was basically get rich quick, so people came thinking they were going to do that without much effort, and without needing to buy in. Once that gets started, it's hard to stop it, especially if the videos are sitting on YouTube, etc.

That doesn't excuse the people coming though who should know better, and either were too blind, naive, stupid whatever, to notice, or didn't care. They saw an opportunity to get theirs and they took it. And when it didn't turn out the way they wanted it, too, because they themselves went to the trough too many times, expecting someone else to pick up their slack, all the while too many others were doing the same thing, voila, we have at least partial blame.

Whales dumping STEEM, doesn't help. Bad press, doesn't help.

However, blockchain savvy investors and those in the know should see STEEM for what it is, way undervalued and pretty underrated and under utilized for what it can do. I think people are going to realize that, and it might take rock bottom prices for it to happen, but then we'll start seeing more than just social media and games here.

All of those who are clinging to the social aspect of it and what they can take out of it will be out of luck again because they won't have any STEEM left to transact in the new economy that will eventually spring up.

Maybe I'm dreaming. It is late. Maybe I should go to bed and be more cynical in the morning. :)