/spit is also being done to a character and not the player. It also does not kill the character. Doesn't even slow the character down.
The "toxic" behavior in the game typically seems to revolve around elitism and the "have vs the have nots". Has nothing to do with emotes or /<whatevr>. People may also need to recognize when they are not able to separate themselves from their character in game and learn when to step away and take a breather.
Seems to me if they want to reduce toxic behavior they would need to remove players ability (in game and on other sites) from viewing other players in any way. Can't look at gear. Remove gear score. Can't look at talents. Block any and all outside sites and sources from accessing game data. Etc. Gamers would also need to revert to a mindset where a 2 hour dungeon run (exaggerated example) is not such a big deal and not expect everyone who plays the game to spend weeks studying before playing.
Devil is always in the details and I'm likely not hitting the nail right on the head here. I just think they have the wrong idea about how to mitigate the issue at hand.