I went to a subreddit meetup around.. 2009, I think; it was the same spirit. (And we accidentally ran into David Blaine, but that's another story).
But, more commonly, meeting up with strangers you met online is pretty much the default way of meeting people (ever heard of Tinder?).
So it seems like you are complaining about the Eternal September more than anything else :)
I went to a subreddit meetup around.. 2009, I think; it was the same spirit. (And we accidentally ran into David Blaine, but that's another story).
But, more commonly, meeting up with strangers you met online is pretty much the default way of meeting people (ever heard of Tinder?).
So it seems like you are complaining about the Eternal September more than anything else :)