How likely is it for the forum to be not busy? Despite some statistics I received from LoyceV the other day indicating a reduction in member activity over the years, it doesn't necessarily mean the forum is less busy. Do you agree with me that inactive accounts that left because they couldn't earn merits shouldn't have been here in the first place? I consider them as spammers and low-quality posters. A member of good quality understands that being active on the forum entails engaging in various discussions that may earn merits along the way. If merits are what they need to stay active, why go offline and become inactive?

While your idea might seem appealing, it doesn't quite fit for several reasons. I see it as a way for some low quality spammers, who left the forum, to be resurrected and continue disrupting the community. They should remain inactive if they believe or have been told that earning merits is the forum's sole focus when there's a wealth of free knowledge to gain. Some members fail to appreciate the privilege of Bitcointalk being a free platform where membership doesn't require payment. In contrast, knowledge in other places comes at a cost. If given such opportunities and one chooses to remain inactive, so be it.

Simply adding more merit sources won't be beneficial if there aren't any quality posts to merit. Again, if low-quality posters return solely because of such a merit supply system, the merit still won't circulate effectively, as one still needs to earn a certain extent of merit before the system autocompletes it.