That's not precisely their statement even if it is their intention. I don't think anyone could argue that statement (though some may deny your axiom of lax perf

That's not precisely their statement even if it is their intention. I don't think anyone could argue that statement (though some may deny your axiom of lax performance requirements). I think people are taking issue with the claims that _Rust_ is imposing the cognitive burden. As I said, these burdens already exist, languages just weren't forcing people to deal with them.