It was the "finest" crypto payments network while it was a "better bitcoin". i.e. support bitcoin's level of mining protocol while decoupling a service layer.

That would have given Dash a huge advantage in BOTH store of value terms AND in network service terms because the whole point of the Dash protocol is that you don't have to compromise one for the other.

Instead we went the other way and are now simply gifting half the coin supply to existing holders with no resulting monetary benefit. We are not benefiting from being commodity money as our market counterparts are (since you need 100% mining for that) nor are we benefiting from being a prolific retail payments platform (since you need to be a stable coin for that).

Dash's unique opportunity was being a robust form of commodity money (near fully mined) WHILE delivering services. That was the whole point of decoupling the service layer from the mining layer. If you don't care about mining and only about payment then invest in the shares that back a stable coins such as Waves.

Dash is a bitcoin clone. It is commodity money and don't ever forget it. There is no route back to competitiveness other than reflating our mining quota.