If a performance gain improves the user experience by either making your product faster or by expanding the ceiling in which you can introduce new features, the

If a performance gain improves the user experience by either making your product faster or by expanding the ceiling in which you can introduce new features, then yes, the decision can be based on that metric only. I can appreciate many of the points you made, but programmers are happiest when they can eat, and happy paying customers can put food on the table :)