To be really clear -- I didn't write "don't use frameworks". I will happily say "Don't use megaframeworks; use microframeworks.". And, I'll add "read the code

To be really clear -- I didn't write "don't use frameworks". I will happily say "Don't use megaframeworks; use microframeworks.". And, I'll add "read the code in these microframeworks, learn what they do and how they do it, and start to see ways that the different tools available to you can be assembled". I also absolutely agree that one should not create your own (mega)framework in order to build your application. But luckily I never said that one should ;) And, I agree with your last paragraph and can add to it: "I suppose my theory is that as long as you're using an open-source framework or collection of microframeworks,..." In my own experience, over time the use of small, clean open-source libraries (the microframeworks) beats the hell out of the codebases built on the megaframeworks. Eventually, you have to replace something, and replacing one component among many is a hell of a lot quicker, easier, and efficient than plumbing one out of a larger, less simple, monolith.