Easiest Way to Implement Moderation/Tagging

I am trying to figure out the best way to get a moderation system going that follows the following workflow:

1. Logged-in users (i.e. "Members") are able to create content. The content is only viewable by the member that created it and by Moderators.
2. Members in a Moderator role can view content and either approve (i.e. make it visible to all site visitors) or demote (i.e. revert back to pre-approved state) content.

I've tried to implement this using content_moderator and the combination of nmoderation and votingapi, but I can't get it working. I've been working on this for quite a while (6+ hours) and I'm not sure what to do next. I've searched the forum archives, but I can't find anything that is directly on point. Is what I'm trying to do possible without writing any custom code?

I'm also working on the best way to tag the content that members create. I'm using the free tagging functionality of the taxonomy module in conjunction with the taxonomy_user module. What I haven't figured out is how best to allow visitors to navigate the content... any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for any help!

Gavin