“I know this sounds critical, which it is” You have no reason to be critical at all. The author is expressing a desire to help people. They are here because the

“I know this sounds critical, which it is” You have no reason to be critical at all. The author is expressing a desire to help people. They are here because they are unclear how to do so. That being said, I actually really agree with what you’re saying. (So if your tone was to get strangers on the internet to read a valid point, you succeeded with me at least.) To summarize the greatest takeaway for me: technically the most efficient way to give back (definitely not glamorous) is probably donating further SE income.