I'll be watching this thread, everyone, please be nice about this discussion even if it's a controversial topic.
As for my thoughts? I was named specifically so here's my take:
If we're talking about the forums in general, things have improved significantly and people absolutely an respect one another's work within this section of the community. Compared to those older days, I feel a lot more satisfied in making content in this kind of environment.
I am also thankful for all the new people I've met, and the people who support my projects in a non-transactional way. It is an honor to make mods with many of your positive interactions. It's a much better situation than people mindlessly begging for assets like the old days. I'm still amazed that I have people helping with research, texture making, collaborations with models, scripts.
For me personally, if there is a solution to this "problem", it's the one I've been saying for years. If you don't like private mods, instead of tearing down content creators, support public mods instead. There are many public release mods that need a lot of love and improvement and could benefit from your effort. Look at how community sourced information was able to help Project Nostalgia and Montana. It really doesn't take much but you could become a part of making your favorite mods be even better.