That is exactly right. Steem's efficiency comes from this governance mechanism which enables us as a community to *do things faster*, whether it's producing blocks or hardforking, because we vote on block producers who we trust to reliably produce blocks and only approve hardforks that make Steem better. If not for this democratic component, we would all be stuck in the same stalemates and sisterforks that are plaguing other platforms. Witnesses have limited, but *vital*, responsibilities and it is the responsibility of the stakeholder to ensure that the witnesses they vote for share their vision for the future of Steem. The real power of Steem is that it is a *tabula rasa*‒it can be whatever we want it to be‒but only if we give serious thought to that vision and leverage our stake to effectuate that vision.