But this equilibrium that you cite in your example isn't what is happening. The whale digger is obfuscating the inflationary effect by introducing non-recurring inflation on a much larger scale.
There is no "inflation" being introduced by the digger. All of those CLAMs already exist on the blockchain, and the fixed (other than staking rewards) supply number is listed on the OP. It hasn't changed.
Oh come on mate, you're trying to make the case that it's a distinction without a difference, but there is a huge difference. Let's call them potential and actual CLAMs to differentiate, like potential and kintetic energy. Potential energy can't hurt you until it becomes kinetic energy. In the same fashion, it is clearly established that only actual CLAMs affect price. Potential CLAMs are hypothetical (potential) until they're dug and become actual. The potential CLAMs aren't undergoing inflation, but the actual CLAMs absolutely are, and they're the ones that affect price.
I agree with you on the the reset of expectations, I raised that point earlier and suggested the falling price was a foreseeable risk. That doesn't change the above though.
If the economy (utility) of CLAM doesn't grow as fast as staking inflation
If the economy of CLAM doesn't grow a lot the whole thing is stupid. Most of the active supply is in the JD bankroll. A (supposedly) decentralized cryptocurrency used to largely support a single site, being secured using proof-of-stake where nearly all of the stake is under the control of one individual is pointless nonsense.
The only good reason to support this project is in the hope that its economy does grow to where this currently-pointless nonsense is in the past.
I agree with you. This has kinda been my point. There's talk about Doogcoin and yada yada, which baffles me because CLAM is a de facto Doogcoin. CLAM has virtually no value without JD. There are a couple other places you can gamble with it, but they only started after JD gave it legitimacy and brought the audience. No doubt that was not Doog's intention, I'm sure he liked the fair distribution model and the attributes of the coin, but by adopting such a tiny coin that was the inevitable result. I don't fault him necessarily for seeing that's the way it would turn out (that's nobody's fault), it just is what it is. Whether JD starts a new coin and abandons CLAM or keeps accepting CLAM along side it, or only accepts CLAM, CLAM's long-term prospects are terrible if all you can do with it is play at JD and stake more CLAMs. That has value in a CLAM-JD system, but not outside it.