Most natural water on Earth is only drinkable after boiling it, and it has been like that for ages, so there really hasn’t been a time where it was always safe to drink rainwater. Cholera, plague, and other bacterial diseases were common in olden times and are vanishingly rare in areas with water treatment plants for a reason.

Granted, there is now a lot of other junk in our water that makes some areas worse, but there are also bodies of water that are now considered safe for the first time since we started testing water as well. We need to stop throwing garbage everywhere and we need to better control runoff water that can damage the water table. But it isn’t a clear case of “water was drinkable and now it isn’t, return to olden times because humans are the virus” like the meme suggests.

Pollution has made rain water everywhere in the world not safe to drink. It’s nothing new unfortunately. *grammar

It is; however, I think OP is refering to the excessive amounts of microplastics and PFAs that are found in it now. I wouldn’t think it’s much different from tap water though; you can’t really filter that stuff out.

it is, with caveats

Ok so it depends.

1. what’s nearby (or in the weather pattern’s collection zone) and going into the sky? For example, right now I would NOT drink rainwater from, say, anywhere near a burning oil refinery.

2. what’s the collection mechanism? Anything the rainwater touches, it picks up- debris from roofing and gutters, washout dog poop from local gardens, etc.

3. how has it been stored? Big open tank with stuff blowing in, sitting in the heat?

It can be drinkable but not necessarily.

I sure hope so/ain’t dead yet