My two cents:
Yes, it is unfortunate that flags drain the same resource pool that could otherwise earn and give rewards, but bots will be built to game any system you build.
Right now, one of the biggest problems is bid bots distorting curation. Do we want it to be that simple for people to buy whale flags against other people that are effectively free? How would your proposal be abuse-resistant?
Also, if Steemit is officially no longer in beta, please don't propose using the entire system as an experiment again. It feels reckless.
Agreed. I thought we were no longer in BETA?! This screams of beta testing.