Just wanted to write a quick post as I haven't had the chance to do so in some time with everything going on. I gotta be honest I was really excited for Steem with communities coming out and the EIP being enforced more and more and seeing all the curation happening. I was also for a split second excited for the acquisition even though I did have prejudices against Sun because I know the perception he has from the rest of the crypto community outside Steem and I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. I don't want to get too into all of that right now as I don't want to make the post about him.

I had also wanted to approach Sun with an open mind, which wasn't too hard as I was mainly ignorant of his past. I am grateful for those like you who didn't want to jump to conclusions immediately.

This has all been very demotivating to say the least. I've tried my best to work hard for Steem and seeing it in this risk zone right now is not a good feeling but it's important to keep going. Apologize for the sloppy curation the past couple days, for a few days I wasn't even curating at all while all of this was going on but I'm going to try get back to it a bit more as it's unfair to the regular content creators who aren't as aware of everything going on with Steem right now even though it may be hard to miss.

You do some of the most solid curation on Steem, and I know firsthand how much energy and effort that takes. I hope that you are able to take the time you need to rejuvenate from all this and keep a clear outlook. Our power is in our shared community here, so no matter what happens we will find a way forward somehow. I also believe it is important to keep a focus on quality content even during this fiasco, as I have noticed the quality of Trending posts dropping substantially in recent days. Some of the posts are borderline shitposts, but because they're related to current events they are on the front page with huge payouts. Not a good look for Steem for anyone new checking us out because of the news.

I am very proud of everyone coming together, showing the strengths of DPOS and fighting back vs stake that is being used for voting that shouldn't be. The unity that is being created here and personal issues set aside to work together for the greater good is a great feeling and it ensures me that whatever happens Steem will live on, maybe not the exact chain, maybe not on the exact exchanges but a majority of users will be united and continue the vision of Steem one way or another and that gives me hope for a better future.

It has also amazed me. I knew the core community was strong, but it's been a really positive experience to see everyone rally around protecting our home. Like you said, that strength will remain here, or elsewhere, as the case may be.

OCD will continue curation tomorrow and revamp the compilation post a bit to showcase the best posts we've curated from different communities and also posts outside of communities. It's important to keep going, whatever happens will happen. The power of blockchains will always make it possible for us to continue existing in one way or another and that gives me hope. Let's see how it goes.

That's fantastic that you are looking cross-communities as many have a hard time feeling like they fit in anywhere. And you know as well as I how many excellent posts slip in between the cracks, especially those written by small stakeholders. Look forward to seeing all of that, and all the best in our continued fight to shape this place by our shared principles @acidyo 🙏