RE: What is appropriate use of upvote bots? A survey.
That you are a very rational person is nice for you but in truth we are humans and most of us are intrigued even if involuntarily by high value posts. As in "Why has this post earned $150, can I learn something from it so my posts get such nice rewards too?" And if you look around, there are few consistent patterns to answer such a question. One is of course the "group of whales" - one of them has posted and others have voted. Or some VIP who posts something and it attracts SBD like honey attracts flies. But for middling dolphins, what you learn is that it's the bots who helped a post draw you attention (regardless of the post's quality)
I agree with the "gentleman club rules" the author proposes: use bots because they are here and if you don't, the most determined "reward pool rapists" (to quote @berniesanders) will get away with an even greater booty. But exercise restraint.