I think the biggest threat to that status quo is "better content". Content so good that it cannot be ignored.
Maybe I am delusional, but I think we all have our own visions.
Sorry for going so far off topic, but it cannot be solved for mathematically, since upvotes will always win out over downvotes (in terms of mana).
I don't have a solution, but I will keep plodding along at my own stuff and supporting and engaging the good stuff, too.
No worries, I don't mind going off topic if the discussion is genuine and not just to increase the number of comments.
As far as quality content is concerned, basically one should have the right to post what they want, as long as it's not abuse, and quality is subjective as we have different level of education, different backgrounds and hudge content differently.
Hive is also not just about blogging and could be about and is about a lot more.
I also don't have a solution for all the problems, just a few, but if our voice is not heard, there's little we can do.