> On Linux, the system Python is used by the OS itself, so if you hose your Python you can hose your system.

I never manged to hose the OS Python on Linux, by sticking to a very simple rule: DON'T BE ROOT. Don't work as root, don't run `sudo`.

On Linux, I use the system python + virtualenv. Good enough.

When I need a different python version, I use docker (or podman, which is an awesome docker replacement in context of development environments) + virtualenv in the container. (Why virtualenv in the container? Because I use them outside the container as well, and IMHO it can't hurt to be consistent).