You raise an excellent point. I have been taking trainn pix for over 50 years and post a lot of stuff at Railpix.net. From the relative number of "hits" various pix get it is clear that the "market" for the older stuff is dimishing as the old farts like me die off. A mediocre diesel pic will often get more hits than a good steam image for example. As you suggest many/most people are interested in the stuff they have experienced in real life. For you an SD45 with full light package is as nostalgic as maybe the 4449 is to me.
This has a lot of implications not only for Trains but also for railroad museums, where they need something more than nostalgia to attract visitors. Or perhaps adjust their nostalgia to fit current demographics. As for the pissing contests....well....they are occasionally humorous.

JBWX