As a former engineering manager: no, I don't want to have a discussion about the hypothetical emoji. I want the engineer to put a rocketship in their commit message to have a slightly brighter day, and I want to acknowledge that someone else made a positive comment about it.
If you are genuinely at the point in your life where "people saying they like things" is the same as ... what you're describing ... please be aware of the emotional impact you're having on the people around you.