" I just couldn't keep supporting a system filled with exploitation and cut-throat competitiveness when I was constantly railing against the destructiveness of that same system. It just seemed too much like a hypocrisy to me.

Amen! You & I share this view - working any job for a company that I didn't support ethically just felt like a total failure of personal morals. And sadly most jobs seemed to fall into that category.

Steemit definitely has parallels to the early internet - it's that "wild wild west" vibe. We're all learning together how to best harness the power of this amazing new platform.