Keep in mind that karma includes both submissions and comments (unlike reddit, where they are separate). For comments, at least, there is a clear bias where co

Keep in mind that karma includes both submissions and comments (unlike reddit, where they are separate). For comments, at least, there is a clear bias where comments from users with higher karma tend to stay at the top of the comment page longer, regardless of the votes for other comments. This is intentional and definitely contributes to the effect