We all hope that Theymos aim for creating the merit system; which is to bring sanity to the forum is achieved. Though alot of people dont like the system while some does. It will be impossible for anyone to sell a huge amount of merit without been noticed. Many peopIe here strive to get merits but I always tell people, do what you know how to do best; the merit will come on it own.
Normally, those who are here to learn and contribute absolutely prefers the merit system while those who their main aim is just to come make some quick bucks are the ones who will not prefer it as they will end up stuck in one position with their shit posting. However, some may feel it is not fair, since we still have some legendary shitposters anyway, but life generally is not fair, and looking at the good side of it all, at least, it has brought some sanity.
Yes it definitely brought back some sanity to the forum and this is a very good thing. It would have been a shame if it would have drowned in meaningless posts by people trying to grow accounts for commercial purposes.
And its also true that especially for lower ranks it has become more difficult to rank up and a few older members have started their own initiatives in offering to reward good posts accordingly.
It will probably all just take a few weeks of adjusting and re-adjusting until everything runs smoothly and *everyone* is happy! :-)