The Polkadot Paradox: A Community in Crisis?

Polkadot, a decentralized platform that enables various blockchains to interoperate, has been praised as a revolutionary project in the cryptocurrency space. However, recent events and criticisms suggest that all might not be well within its community. 
 
A significant event that came unexpectedly in the Polkadot community was the sudden shutdown of PolkaWorld. This well-known Polkadot community recently announced the cessation of its operations, a decision that came after their proposal to secure funding from Polkadot's treasury was turned down. PolkaWorld raised alarms about the treasury management practices under Polkadot's new open governance platform, OpenGov. 

???? #116 PolkaWorld Ops & Maintenance proposal: 2023.9 - 2023.11 ????

???? PolkaWorld, Founded in June 2019, @polkaworld_org has been around for four years now, is the Polkadot community in China and has gathered more than 50,000 followers

???? Recently, a proposal requested by… pic.twitter.com/KZ9T6xIbRE — Polkadot Insider (@PolkadotInsider) August 20, 2023

According to the community, the current system is pushing long-term contributors away from the Polkadot ecosystem. In the past, a council, elected by Polkadot DOT holders, was responsible for evaluating proposals. PolkaWorld suggests that this council system should be reintegrated into the current OpenGov platform.

The introduction of Polkadot's OpenGov system was aimed at giving every tokenholder a say in the platform's direction. While this initiative promotes decentralized governance, it has also been a source of contention. PolkaWorld labeled treasury management as a significant point of contention since the introduction of OpenGov. 

The community feels that the treasury is hesitant to convert funds into cash, leading to a tendency to vote against most proposals. Despite the criticisms, PolkaWorld believes that OpenGov, with its issues, is still an upgrade for Polkadot. They urge the community to adapt to the changing rules and guide the system in the right direction.

Markian Ivanichok's critique of Polkadot offers a deeper insight into the challenges faced by projects within the ecosystem. Ivanichok reminisced about the early days when Polkadot was seen as a promising technology. However, over time, he felt a growing disconnect between the ecosystem's vision and its actual direction. Ivanichok detailed how a proposal by 727 Ventures for an offline business development event was rejected by DOT voters.

1\ Our @Polkadot Blockchain journey started back in 2021 year.

Back then Polkadot being promising technology, with experienced tech leader @gavofyork has motivated us as founders to choose this ecosystem as the one to grow in.https://t.co/Zb2kKlIoA5

Thread below ⬇️ — Markian Ivanichok ???????? (@0xMarkian) September 14, 2023

Polkadot, once a dominant name in the cryptocurrency space, has faced challenges recently. From a market capitalization of nearly $53 billion, Polkadot has seen a decline of over 90% in its value. Despite the setbacks, Polkadot still has a market capitalization of around $5 billion.