The perception I've gotten is somewhat different, though based on much of the same stories. I don't think Amazon is a horrible place to work, but it seems like a horrible place to stay for too long.

I had a roommate who was a nurse who and worked in a couple of area hospitals. When I asked her why she drove 90 minutes to one hospital rather than working all her hours at closer area hospitals, her response was, "That hospital is in a poorer area of town and gets all sorts of bizarre and desperate medical issues. It would take me 5 years at the other hospital to get the experience I'll get in six months a that hospital."

I think Amazon is like that hospital. It's an amazing place to grow and learn things you basically can't learn otherwise. And employers elsewhere know it. When I get an Amazon candidate who spent more than a year there, I can basically know ahead of time that that candidate will pass the technical part of the interview process. But once you've got that 1-2 years of experience, it's a place to leave, go elsewhere and get treated/paid better.

But again, this is based on anecdotal evidence from past Amazon employees...I've never worked there.

I think we're saying the same thing, but with different slants. The perception of Amazon right now (again, I don't know first hand) is that the work there is extremely intense to the point of maddening, and that can make it very attractive for certain people, and very unattractive for others. If you want to gain good experiences quickly and build your resume with a big name, it's a very viable option for you so long as you are willing to make the trade-off in work/life balance and stress. If you're no longer at that point in your career, it's not going to be for you.