people should focus on creating good content and sincerely comment on other people's works
That's a great mantra to follow for sure...especially for newer members.
I do believe that the higher-ups will do something about this if they see any threat
That depends on what you mean by higher-ups. A common misconception is that there is a centralized authority on the Steem blockchain. That isn't the case. The only "higher-up" with the ability to do anything with regard to voting abuse are those with high stakes in Steem, the whales.
Thanks for your comment.