Reddit used to be a great platform to discuss some topic and get different points of few in a friendly but factual manner. However, slowly it seems like the platform has become a lot more like Facebook, where it's been invaded by toxic people that are constantly looking for opportunities to shit and hate on others.
The change has been gradual so I really didn't notice it creep up on me. It's become super evident now having used Kbin and others for a week or so where people generally seem to be more friendly again and willing to actually discuss things in a usually civil way.
The difference is stark too. Today I replied to a comment saying that I hope things turn out better for them and wound up in a weird comment chain about how people were apparently insensitive for wanting to get a basic haircut that they for some reason couldn't afford themselves. Meanwhile, Kbin and the Fediverse feels like a refreshing place to actually converse with people once you get past the clunk and figure it out.
I think Reddit may well have reached that main stream social media saturation point where it very objectively now sucks. It happened originally with the internet itself thanks to the rise of the smartphone and this is just another iteration of it. I feel like Spez might as well get that bag at this point because they've ruined what used to be the platform people went to for social media without the bullshit, without algorithms to drive "engagement" and to avoid the toxic culture that has prevailed.
Thanks for reading my rant.
You make great points, and style bonus for good turns of phrase.
ETA: I think you touched on a structural element that is also interdependent on demographics. Not age related, necessarily, but what are certain people looking for.
At some population density tipping point, Reddit stopped catering to thoughtful discussion, and became a place for memes and doomscrolling, bumper sticker slogans and reposts. Feedback loops developed, because people were coming for that content. Reddit became the place to find it.
Now, it's not that I don't partake of those sometimes, but I appreciate keeping those instances (subs) separate from the more interactive and human part.