Great write up. I especially connected with the bowling trophy analogy. Buying votes does not make you an accomplished blogger or entertainer!
I have to admit, I did use some voting bots when I first joined the platform, but I ended up coming to similar realizations after a bit. Even though at first I had posts that I spent hours on make pennies, it was worth it to focus on building relationships and improving my content instead of just relying on buying votes.
When the votes for sale first showed up, curiosity killed the cat. I picked one up. Bought one for someone else. I just felt stupid though. I felt so greedy. Then, over time, I've basically come to the conclusion they introduced crack into the community and more and more people are getting hooked. I don't know why I can't just say that without an analogy. I guess those are fun. Rambling.