True. Having a forum filled with thread after thread after thread of \"hi, I\'m new!\"s would be incredibly boring. Most people will end up being ignored because people just can\'t be bothered to say hi anymore.
And the place would become filled with newbie questions anyway, because the newcomers will think it an appropriate place to post such things. No, if they want to join and say hi, General or Newbie areas should suffice.

They already do, after all.