I'm really confused - why don't Ph.D.'s with excellent pedigrees just get paid more money than "idiots running around with rubber-stamped PhD.s"? Maybe the market doesn't see such a big difference..
I think you are right lost_marbles. The difference between a PhD with an excellent pedigree and a rubber-stamped PhD should be their publication records. The problem would still exist if these rubber-stamped PhDs weren't there, I think. As a postdoc, you're going to get paid zilch, period.