An alternative narrative is that standing on principle (for things like this) is at best orthogonal to the reasons I (us) have it as good as we do. Just becaus

An alternative narrative is that standing on principle (for things like this) is at best orthogonal to the reasons I (us) have it as good as we do. Just because the stories about people standing on principle are sticky doesn't mean they cause good outcomes. (Also, there's the other side of the coin, where people who stand on principles cause great harm, intentionally or otherwise.)