So how do you change this?
Honestly, I don't know. Maybe the problem is that the Bitcoin client is not user friendly, or that there isn't an easy fast way to buy bitcoins, or that a lot of websites have been hacked lately, or maybe the problem lies in Bitcoin itself because it isn't appealing to most consumers. I'm still trying to figure it out...
It feels like one of the main reasons people get involved with BTC is as an investment vehicle- Either to start mining, or to play the 'buy low sell high' game (I guess scammers could fall under this too, get money quick schemes). This doesn't support BTC in the long run- A major drop in the exchange rate and people in this category would leave. Already I get the feel that most of the forks are in the same vein- Longing for the days when BTC was much easier to mine, before the peak in prices over the summer.
You are correct. A lot of people are only in it for the profits. And most of the alternative chains were created because people wanted to "get in" early and mine with low difficulty. A few of those alternatives are already succumbing due to poor design decisions and critical bugs in the code.