The experience of being bullied plays a lot into me being cautious with random people, but this often served me well (e.g. when picking PIs, several people in my peer group ran right into abusive situations and ignored warnings - a lot of luck is involved already and it’s easy to slip here if you have not learned to take little warning signs seriously, or even perceive them). I’m still often trusting too quickly and have to hold myself back.
Don’t you think that the time you have spent with the republican conspiracy theorist, however fascinating, could have been better spent with someone who doesn’t have strange internet-formed beliefs? There are lots of people in specialized (e.g. nerd, travel) circles who are searching for true friendship who might have more common ground. I do talk to randos if there is such an initial filter. Most educated people in society seem to prefer it this way, there is a reason why the linked story creates a sense of novelty.