I find the thought process challenging. Sometimes I just upvote when I read something I like, without really looking at the current value. Other times I look at the value first, which sometimes changes my mind. If I read a post that has a lot of coin already, but is a mediocre comment, I won't upvote it. It's not that I feel that person shouldn't get the reward. It's that by abstaining, I'm simply of the opinion that the current pending payout exceeds the value of the content by too much for me to contribute.
This post turned out to be the former - one I appreciated and voted up without looking at the potential payout first. I think @berniesanders' questioning is valid. While I appreciate the article, IMO, the content isn't worth four figures.