Firstly, lets try and have a civil discussion about this topic.
Upon reaching max level gear becomes the primary resource used to improve our characters ability to function effectively in World of Warcraft. In this current state purple gear has become appropriately termed as welfare epics because upon reaching max level there really isn't much effort required to acquire your first purple.
The problem with this system is that it subconsciously imprints onto a new or inexperienced player that this is the rate of acquiring purple gear in current WoW which truthfully isn't the case. Once you have gathered up your Timeless Isle epics the rate at which you get useful epics sees a drastic decrease. This alone, in the mind of a new player, breaks that mental precedent for gearing and can very easily have a negative effect on a player. Most players will eventually adopt a more mature mindset about the matter but many others will develop an entitled mentality. Epics came so easy in the beginning, why are epics now so difficult and time consuming to acquire.
This system could simply be avoided if Blizzard invested more into the colour of gear and instead of catch-up mechanics rewarding purples they could reward blues, which come dime a dozen the moment you hit level 15. The precedent that Rare gear is easy to come by has been set and it certainly isn't going anywhere. If people establish the mindset that blues are the easy to obtain gear(even if stats are on par with epics of similar ilvl) and purples are the gear that require Raiding(I'm going to include LFR in this but feel free to discuss it). People will have a better sense of accomplishment when they actually obtain this gear.
I understand that this creates a division in the community but truthfully this division already exists. I can't imagine that this will cause a greater division between players then already exists. When Blizzard started giving epics to everyone people evolved into checking Gear scores and when that was removed they just used their understanding of Ilvls, talent allocation, glyphs, enchanting, achievements and gems amongst other things. A difference in gear colour won't create a division that doesn't already exist.
While I am sure people will discuss other potential problems I truly believe making the colour of gear have a more concrete meaning in character development could have psychological benefits to the overall playerbase and their comprehension of time spent constructively = greater reward.
Current Model
If you have Blue Gear - Congratulations you are past level 15 and developing your character towards max level
If you have Purple Gear- Congratulations you hit level 90, you may or may not be raiding
If you have Orange Gear - Congratulations you've committed a substantial amount of time, skill and energy to acquire it
Proposed Model
If you have Blue Gear - Congratulations you are past level 15 and developing your character towards max level
If you have Purple Gear- Congratulations you have spent a Reasonable amount of Time, Skill and Energy Raiding to acquire it
If you have Orange Gear - Congratulations you've committed a substantial amount of time, skill and energy to acquire it
I understand that epics are available prior to max level but I'm confident in your ability to understand the point I'm trying to drive home.
Skill matters to me much more than gear but don't fool yourself into thinking that the colour of the gear doesn't have its own significance otherwise all gear would be colourless.
I'm on the fence as to whether or not LFR would be included because while it certainly doesn't feel like raiding to me it does require a lot of time and energy and I don't consider those who put up with it to be second class citizens. I can certainly see how giving LFR blue gear with the same stats would influence more people to progress into flex simply for the status but it may not sit well with people.
You can freely apply all of this to PvP as well as I stand by this system their too.
Feel free to discuss =)