I've spent some more time looking at this problem today and I see examples of exactly that - new users being turned off the system right at the beginning. After my initial enthusiasm I am starting to wonder seriously if Steemit is for me after all. I've even seen one account that appears to have been created purely for the purpose of annoying other users by flagging them (I don't mention that account here for fear of being attacked - i.e. I am self-censoring myself here). The only way forward I can see with the system as it is, is if some of the powerful users start recognizing the problem and acting to protect new users who get wrongly attacked as they join.