My word, what a lot of new-ish posters we have posting repetitive and/or inane topics on an all too regular basis.
It's just a suggestion, but how about a system whereby people don't get the "start new thread" option until they've posted 100 replies elsewhere?
It encourages, if not forces people to read others posts for a good couple of weeks.
It prevents the occasional spamming having quite the effect it does at present.
You don't have to reinstate visible post counts, just have an internal trigger point.