HN is a complex system consisting of community, software, and moderation. We need all three of those in order for it to function. Without software support (a lot of it), HN would be impossible.
Of course the software is imperfect, but that's also true of the moderators and (dare I say it) the community. Each needs to compensate for the imperfections of the others.
Yes, software to lazily censor can help you guys if you are too lazy to classify what to censor. It doesn't help much though as it decreases the overall quality of the site in exchange for potential moderation threshold decreases.
Like I said though, doesn't really help remove flamewars, that's what moderation is for.
No idea why it's getting pushed farther and farther down the front page despite getting lots of activity.