Thats a tough one. I would say he used a submission and didn't get a lot of points out of it. His climb to any amount of points will be slow and painful.
I have seen new users break 1k points and reach the ability to make meme comments on their first day, sometimes in an hour or two. Because they're playing nice.
I forgot to add, it's polite to ask first when reusing/reposting material. Every time I've asked other users if I can use something, they have always said yes. Every time a user has asked me, I have always said yes. I have felt pretty darn great when Raydog has asked if he can use something of mine.
Trolls thrive on attention, generating a reaction. When howbowdahhhhhh used one of 123Guy's memes and took it to the top of the front page, 123Guy reacted the way he expects others would. Salty.
If you say your flattered and thank you for the compliment to a troll if they repost something without asking, I guarantee you are getting the better end of the deal. No matter what they say.