I don’t think the parent was saying that everyone’s intentions were pure until recently, but rather that naked greed wasn’t cool before, but now it is.
The Internet has changed a lot over the decades, and it did used to be different, with the differences depending on how many years you go back.
Gavin is a perfect example of this, tho fictional. "Doing good" was a route to personal success and domination; Gavin under a Trump admin would have dropped the act, just as others have done.
The Internet has changed a lot over the decades, and it did used to be different, with the differences depending on how many years you go back.