Taking a dip into the Augmented Social Network mailing list I came across the following from Brad DeGraf.

Re: Monetising Social Capital (Distributed Capitalism):

not sure about a technical answer, but here's an anecdotal one. the best connected people, especially ones whose livelihoods depend on their rolodexes (i.e. social capital), will be least inclined to participate in any system that reduces the (monetary) value of their social capital to them.

I read this and the veil lifted. Here is the reason why the social capital, social networking parade raises my hackles: The whole model reeks with the stench of salepeople, fresh out of bed with their motivational speakers, top ten tips for making connections, and associated drivel all bent on moving more information and product for the final end goal of acquisition of stuff.