> the is no Reddit, only subreddits - each of which is moderated in a different way

I was banned for 2 days on the whole platform for following a link to Voat, another link back to Reddit and downvoting a guy who was copy/pasting the same comment all over the thread. (Reddit is surprisingly link-sharing adverse for a site based on link sharing)

Reddit exists through the abuses and policies of its administrators. It's not a generic forum platform and I don't think it ever was.