This article reads pretty bizarrely to me.
Del.icio.us does absolutely seem to be the same design as reddit if you look at old screenshots, and predating Reddit by 2 years definitely makes reddit look like a bit of a ripoff. I’d argue both are just an evolution of the forum format so not too special.
Aaron Schwartz seems to take a very big place in reddit’s mythos and it feels weird seeing him take up only a single paragraph - the author is only telling their own story, though, so it only makes sense if author didn’t know him. It does change my perspective of reddit hearing that Steve and Alexis were aiming to be your bog-standard startup from the getgo and Scharwz only came as a later team addition.
Article feels a bit like an advertisement for investing.
I think you’ve falsely equated violence with revolution.
There are currently arsonists in Atlanta and elsewhere in the US fighting the creation of cop city and projects like it via property damage. That is violence with no danger of creating an autocracy. I’d argue the Black Panthers, the Suffragettes and the IRA all used violence which posed no danger of autocracy.
I do agree that strong group unity, some form of multistate participation, and good leadership and structure, are all very important for it to yield positive results.
Edit: put NRA instead of IRA, fuck me. Fixed now.