1. “Old web” things were replaced by VC-backed apps because the apps had a better user experience, not just because big tech conspired to kill the old web. People wanted to use social media instead of RSS feeds because social media is easier to use than RSS feeds. Ditto for Discord replacing IRC. People here sometimes act like IRC declined because of a bigtech conspiracy against it. IRC declined because you had to message a freaking bot once a month to keep your nickname.
2. Wayland and systemd solve a lot of problems and are overall a step in the right direction.

It feels really cool to use a purely mechanical one, haha. Like you’re a chemist in the 16th century figuring out pressure for the first time.

Calipers. I bought a cheapo pair (this one) because it was convenient for measuring the parts on a mechanical watch that I was modding. Now I use them all the time around the house for finding the size of nuts, bolts, rope thickness, etc.

Knowing Javascript is super useful. You’ll get a lot of people recommending other languages, mainly because Javascript has its quirks that will bother you eventually. Those are valid criticisms of Javascript. But it is useful because of how universally available it is. Web apps get hate for being slower than native apps, but it is nice being able to put a browser-based project together, knowing that basically every computer on earth will be able to run it.

I think your general idea is correct. You’ll probably also find that, once you know one language, you’ll end up picking up others much more quickly.

I’ve always thought that it’s easier to learn something if you are somehow drawn towards that thing. So if you find Javascript appealing, go for it. Don’t bother trying to learn the “perfect” or “best” programming language; there isn’t one anyway.