I think I disagree with this. Not about using raw SQL when needed. I would definitely do that for a hot, complex query if I felt I needed to but I think Active

I think I disagree with this. Not about using raw SQL when needed. I would definitely do that for a hot, complex query if I felt I needed to but I think ActiveRecord is rock solid if you know how to use it and how to examine its output. There are times where an ORM is a very useful tool and I've found ActiveRecord to be better than most home made query generators I’ve run into regardless of base language.