well, i see i made it onto merlyn's 19 most wanted list
(yes, i counted :) but i haven't voted either ++ or --
on the node in question.

"However, I'm completely open to other suggestions about
how to eliminate the personality voters.
I am very willing to hear suggestions. "

how about registering a new username (how about
Quirinus, the patron saint of obsession?), and not
telling anyone you don't trust that it's really you.
That way no-one can commit the dastardly crime of
personality voting that seemingly plagues this site and
annoys you so much.

as you said yourself...
"Let nodes stand on their own. Vote the node, not
the poster. The author of the node should not be a
factor in the posting"

Or, alternatively, you could just try and ignore the
tiny percentage of people here who seem to get their
kicks from -- voting you.

To paraphrase Sam Goldwyn...
"Don't pay any attention to them, Merlyn. Don't even ignore them"