it really puzzles and frustrates me when they prioritize their short-term self-interest ahead of their own long-term self-interest - and that harms my long-term self-interest, too.

Agreed. No society has ever flourished when every individual has acted alone.

Back when Dan Larimer left, he made the point that Steemit's future success depended on web development skills, but we've seen very little of that in the subsequent years.

I'd say very little is an understatement. I think it's been quickly forgotten that 14 months ago, Steemit had seen zero noticeable change. I accept the argument that the current rate of change is slow. And perhaps I've been too subtle with the changes I've made. Too incremental to the extent that those casual users who now oppose my work haven't noticed. But having zero Issue on GitHub raised within the last 5 years is a pretty good demonstration of progress.

Politics is not my skill set, and also not my area of interest.

Me neither. Which is probably why some people don't like me. I'm no diplomat. Never have been. Never will be.

I'm glad to read that. I almost skipped my blog post this month because it feels like pushing on a string. Being a cheerleader just isn't my personality, but I keep hoping it'll start getting some traction. I could just do my own personal delegations each month, and leave it at that, but that's not gonna spur participation, so I'm happy to read that it's having some impact, anyway.

Have you seen how many delegations I've received? These aren't people delegating in the hope of getting votes. Or people wanting anything from me in return.

You inspired these people. That inspires me.