The fact that they're newbies already fucks them over because no one is going to merit them, and that's it, stuck in a deadlock, not just as newbies, but again and again until they reach Hero level.
No one cares if they are a Newbie or not. I will merit anyone regardless of their rank if their post is good enough. Actually, I prefer to rank up low-rank because it "helps" them.
The problem is that finding a Newbie that deserves even a single merit is a hard task.
A quick read for you:
MYTHBUSTERS: Only high ranked users are rewarded with merits