That's why I started my discussion with the statement that we need to implement whatever other plans may be on the drawing board to reign in the use of bots. Maybe add a level of authentication before each vote, that is bot-proof? I agree we need to fix the current assumptions about what rep score is to make it what it is supposed to be NOW before moving ahead with changes.
Regarding newbies, I don't think they make enough now to even stay around. If I had signed up just after HF20, I wouldn't still be here, that's for sure.