Using a freshly installed linux distro and being unable to chmod anything as root is not on me, I’d say, but rather the system itself. I’ve came across that problem only one other time in my years of using linux and turns out it was because systemd was slowly but surely commiting suicide, and would eventually destroy the system due to some obscure bug at the time.

Its DIRT SIMPLE to install a fresh Linux OVER another distro and have it work just fine.

My experience tells me otherwise, but maybe it was due to the computers being either very old or very low end.

Linux can be recovered from just about any state. Windows – LOL.

I’ve had Windows work itself out more times than Linux. The only problem with linux is that you either dive into the deep end and know your way around it and fix the problems yourself, or drown. Windows was made for people with close to no tech literacy that wants something that just works, and it is good at performing that, even given all it’s flaws. Though maybe that crown will finally be stolen in a few decades with efforts like Valve’s with the steam deck.