Lots of people. Usually the people who earned lots of them care more about them than the people who havent.
On Edit: This is a general observation. This was not directed at you directly, I'm sorry if it appeared this way.
They give the new users a tool with which to judge the credibility of the advice given. If I tell you that the secret to great tasting brisket is to use old livestock trailer floorboards for smoke wood, how would you know if I was full of crap or not? If I had a lot of green tiles you would probably believe me. A user with a lot of green tiles though, would never tell you that.
No we are NOT! Frankly, there is a lot of misinformation floating around lately. There is a lot of advice being given which is incorrect by people who obviously haven't smoked that much.
That's great!!
Again. Yes we do in order to protect the integrity of the knowledge base and to preserve a certain level of trust.
And, yes, Darrin asked a legitimate question and should not have been accused of being a troll.
I'll climb off of my soap box now.
Dave