Doesnt it feel to anyone else like we are lying when we tell people bitcoin is decentralized?
Bitcoin is decentralized. It's security/block production is just not evenly distributed amongst all users. Nothing will ever be completely distributed unless you live in a communist utopia with no elite ruling class. Bitshares is decentralized too. It has the potential to be more distributed than the current state of bitcoin thus making it more decentralized than Bitcoin. However, BitShares decentralization is calculated by share wealth and share wealth vote participation. If 100% of shares voted, the landscape of delegates would be very much the same because of a few elite/major share holders. These share holders/voters are no different than the large mining pools and mining operations for Bitcoin.
Then again, if you draw a large enough circle around something, it will always be centralized.
I almost agree with this. I certainly love the "large enough circle" quotable quote.
The difference with BitShares is that it is at least possible for small stakeholders to unite to completely eliminate the influence of large stakeholders. In a more realistic situation, only delegates most agreed upon by BOTH the small holders AND big holders would likely reach the Top 101. If the small holders don't vote, oh well, they just agreed with the large holders. This is still, by definition, a generally acceptable outcome.
This is not possible with the other schemes you mentioned. There, the big guy's influence is absolute.
Yeah, I kind of based it off the quote from Fight Club, "On a long enough time line, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.” Although, it is a concept that I am sure others have eluded to if not outright stated it.
I agree that small holders can unite, but at a greater effort and time.
I do think mining pools are subjected to the collective consensus of the little guys.
I guess the real test or question would be is: if someone put 10% of BTC's cap into a mining operation, would they be able to attain as much network control as someone who buys 10% stake of BTS shares? Or would it be more.