At the very least beagle needs some cheese to go with that whine.
I think part of the problem with the giant influx of new folks is that with the whole 60 minutes thing it suddenly became "cool" to be on FR. Something like... "In the future, everyone will be Buckhead for 15 minutes."
Most of our other periods of rapid growth came at times of struggle (like yourself, I signed up during the election fiasco) because we needed the community of like minded brethern. 9-11 is another example.
FR is always changing, with continuity provided by a shared history and the work of many great FReepers. This is just another bump in the road.
If we made it through the "All your base..." phase, we can survive anyhting. :)
This is why I am, generally, very welcoming of newbies. The times of struggle not only bring fellow conservatives into the forum, the difficult times also bring the worms out from under their rocks. Unless it is clearly obvious, I do not automatically assume that a newbie is a troll. A lot of genuine conservatives have signed on recently and yes, it is unfortunate that they get hazed along with the liberal trolls.
There is no sure fire way to separate the wheat from the chaff. Thick skin, patience, state your views intelligently and coherently...it all helps.