I'm torn on the whole verification thing. One, I value my privacy. Two, I don't want to get sucked up into the meta-data collective beyond what I'm willing to share. Once it is on the internet, it is out of your control.
I write original stories and share them here, nowhere else. If that isn't good enough -- and cheetah hasn't been flagging me so they are truly original -- then I don't know what to tell you.
I can see how it would be useful for people pretending to be celebrities or riding the coat-tails of someone who has a following elsewhere on the net, but for me I'm fine with just posting text.
I'm also reticent about putting my details out on the net. It's interesting seeing how internet etiquette is evolving at this place. In general, there has been a trend IMO to be more circumspect with what you put out there online, and a lot of people, me included, are serious about privacy and the possibility of identity theft and/or putting yourself in potential danger. But here it seems as though the etiquette is to put it all out there. I'm not comfortable doing that, and I wonder if I'll suffer here because of that. To be clear, I'm not famous on social media, so I'm not sure why it should matter.
What you wrote is true though. No one is forcing anyone to verify. Quality content is still the key to a successful account whether they verify or not. It just depends on the person's objectives. Mine include being very public about my writings. I need to do that for specific reasons. Perhaps you don't. :)