Or a recognition that one-size-fits-all doesn't work.
Different desktops have different goals.
I completely agree. I like having choice too. But for mass adoption you need a polished solution that works out of the box, not a bunch of Lego. The answers to users complaining shouldn't be "have you tried alternative software X?"
I think Gnome being the next default for Ubuntu will solve that problem, but mass adoption requires more than that.