I think that technically there are ways that trails and pools and bots (etc) can be used legitimately and in a way that doesn't ruin the vital "content-finding" ability of the site.
For example, bots allow users to send each other "gifts", in a way. Like when you bought an upvote for my post last week, and it was appreciated. Then again, maybe the "gift" could have been the SBD instead of the vote. Then I could put that directly toward my growth, without it going through the "vote buying" cycle which games the system.
I'm not really sure either, but I think it's an important issue, even though it's hard to talk about because this is done all the time, by a large portion of the site's users.
Thanks for encouraging me, and also for not taking this personally. I just want Steemit and all of us to do well long term, and I think focusing on content is key.