I agree with the ease of use, but I won't author or read Medium articles anymore. I am sure Medium feels that it is providing a valuable service by providing a

I agree with the ease of use, but I won't author or read Medium articles anymore. I am sure Medium feels that it is providing a valuable service by providing a platform for authors to monetize their content. I would prefer to pay an author directly and have no desire to support a service that sits between me and the content provider. I realize I am being utopian, but providing a facility like Medium that uses open standards, allows bloggers to blog and doesn't skim profits should be a public service.