Which I've always thought was a sign of mediocre software, but HN/Reddit seems to crucify those that criticize git.

I think Git is like Javascript, it takes relatively little time to learn enough to get up and running, causing most people to forgoe learning all they'll actually need to be successful.

I've been using git for 7 years now, never had the need to go deeper. Lately, I'm using github and pushing / saving my work every so often [kind of like CTRL + S in Windows Office in the '90s]. If something goes wrong, happy to yank the local git and start with a fresh clone from github :)