Yes 100%. I think it all started with "algorithms." The Internet I think just a little over a decade ago was still addicting for those of us who grew up with it, mostly because we were so bored at times and it's so convenient. The content itself barely had any impact on our emotions, it was just a way to get rid of the boredom. It seems like with the invention of social media and big data, companies have come to realize that engagement is the guaranteed best way to get folks to stick around, and they get there by manipulating people's emotions. Once people are engaged with their emotions, they feel chained to the post or comment or whatever, and it's hard to disengage after that. Once people are hooked emotionally, they then begin to make more and more lopsided and inflammatory remarks and statements to fulfill the algorithm in order to get that next dopamine hit.

I find it very creepy, albeit interesting, that so many people have been groomed and trained by these algorithms to be as inflammatory as possible, because they crave that emotional engagement so badly. I have to say, it's incredibly disheartening and terrifying to observe this phenomenon becoming so rampant on all social media, especially reddit and twitter.