Was this formerly a good site? I remember running into cracked periodically in the last few years and it always looked like the absolute worst of clickbait spam, but these articles are rather decent

Once upon a time, yes. I mean, it was always a bit fluffy and lighthearted - that's the point, right? - but they often had quality articles. But then they were acquired in 2016 and it was downhill from there.

I sometimes still see people referencing this article: 6 Harsh Truths That Will Make You a Better Person

https://www.cracked.com/blog/6-harsh-truths-that-will-make-y...