Sure, in the sense that they can differ and co-exist? Of course it's much better in OSS when differences can be resolved so that more people may work together o

Sure, in the sense that they can differ and co-exist? Of course it's much better in OSS when differences can be resolved so that more people may work together on fewer forks, so discussion should come before forks most of the time. The author seems to be doing exactly the right thing - tried to contribute to the shared work, voice their concerns and thought process, and ultimately fork in protest.