It seems to me like the initial idea of Bitcoin was that the process of mining would secure the network, reward participants and ensure honesty.
The rise of ASICs (although predicted) is a glitch in this plan. With ASICs it is once again a situation of the rich getting richer, money making money.
Thanks to ASICs we now have a slew of cryptocurrencies trying to solve this problem.
The most innovative solution I have seen is something I think a lot of people have missed, hence me starting this thread. Perhaps this is something that can be built on.
Recently there has been the release of a coin that at the moment ensures that a human being is actively engaging in a game of skill and luck to compete with others in finding blocks.
Since anyone can mine anywhere in the world (with an internet connection), this is the most egalitarian coin I have come across and I am fascinated by the fact that this has not gained wider attention.
Check out this topic:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=591724.0Conflict of interest: I have 100 for sale on C-Cex at 0.5 BTC