One possible solution is multi-tiered karma. The bottom tier would be the status quo, but the higher tiers require actual insights and productive discussion, and can only be granted by those who have already proven themselves to have the capability to carry out that level of dialogue. There may even be moderation for karma, to give rationale for up/down, with moderators verifying new users at each tier. At the end of it all, the amount of karma isn;t going to be very meaningful, but the tier you are allowed to participate in would give credibility to a small set of discussions, making them meaningful at a societal level.

But I want to be clear that I'm not pitching this idea in any way. This whole idea that I am discussing was literally ripped straight from a sci-fi novel. What I really want is to encourage people to come up with their own ideas, and not just look for minor improvements to reddit's existing site.

I want reddit's leadership to live up to the concept of being revolutionary, not evolutionary.