I didnt read all the thread (yet) but I'd like to comment on a few things:
1. One of the problems why miners see no need to pay is that they can just switch to another of the 20 mining fields if a pirate blocks them in one system. That comes from the fact that:
-all miners are encouraged to make multiple chars all over anyway (because no faction can mine in more fields with max bonus and the second best is like 50% of the besT)
-if pirates block the same guy on other chars they'll probably get sanctioned for hassling.
That problem could partially be mitigated by not encouraging miners to make so many cheap chars everywhere. But it cant really be solved unless the piracy will always result in loss of large quantities of ore in piracy too. And that can only be solved if small no-cargo miners cant mine alone with POBS anymore.
To the argument that the base has to be emptied of ore to make profit too... yeah... that used to be somewhat true, and I used to say the same thing, when the server was still very full. Now that the server is empty, and so many route options still available, it's extremely easy to just ship the ore from the POB to an NPC base when you see there are no pirate around by checking the player list.
So currently, the small-miner+hauler mechanic is broken by the combination of POBs in mining fields and low player/pirate count. With a POB in a mining field, the maximum profit of a small miner like clydesdale is BROKEN, because it's not even necessary to have a second player online spending time online while the miner mines. So the already maximized small miner bonus intended for TEAMWORK is DOUBLED by NOT using teamwork instead of a base in a field. This needs to be fixed.
2. The "I'm a good person because I only mine and dont pirate" is silly, and wrong. Pirates are necessary, or you would have no enemies to shoot with that battleship you're saving your credits for. There HAS to be pirates and enemies, or there is no game. Pirates make much less credits than miners. And its much more difficult to pirate than to mine. And enemies are much more important for the game that people who just make credits so they can buy a large ship, and then have nothing to do with that ship because there are no enemies to use it against. If you want to be a "good" person, you can be a "robin hood" kind of a pirate. Pirate the rich, and give your "profits" (you'll notice they'r negligible compared to mining) to the poor. When I used to pirate, I stole from anyone above level 55, and gave to everyone below level 55 and told them "use that money to multiply it, then come back so I can rob you when you're rich". And I felt really really smug about myself.
3. A lot of pirates are twats. They act all tough, but when they're not complaining about a base, they're complaining about miners using battleships to protect themselves, or the fact that they were too stupid to pirate in the right place so they want rules changed so everyone has to suffer from piracy even if the pirate was too incompetent to prevent the trader from docking before dying. Piracy is MEANT to require skill. It's a challenge, not a right, to succeed in piracy.