But also, the subreddit is trying to weaponize anger against Wall Street for the 2008 crisis into a generalized anger against all hedge funds and investment firms, regardless of whether these firms are actually guilty of anything. Melvin Capital didn't exist until 2014, but it doesn't matter. They're automatically guilty because they're a hedge fund. People on WSB are telling stories about how their families suffered in 2008 and therefore they are never going to sell their GME stock.
WSB mods are deleting posts advising against holding GME. There is a pretty concerted effort on the subreddit to get people to buy more GME and to hold. And the people that do so are going to be the ones holding the bag when the bubble ends.
If you're cynical, you might wonder if redditors are the "mark", and some of these posters are intentionally trying to screw them out of their money. Regardless, the idea that this specifically hurts the people that caused the financial crisis is unsubstantiated.
Anyone can take out a short position. It's only marginally more complicated than buying a stock. Plenty of retail investors are taking short positions, too.
More importantly, the idea that short interest only goes down is a mistake. Anyone, retail or institutional, can close out a short position and re-open a new short position at a higher price. Total short interest remains unchanged, even though earlier shorts have been closed out.