So what it sounds like is that you're assuming that the current C-developers are the top 1% of C developers and therefore need to be in the top 1% of Rust developers, familiar with all niches.

I don't think that's a reasonable assumption either which way. So it sounds like you're arguing against people learning a new language and using it in a professional or open source context because learning takes time and they're not instantly experts.

But.. never getting started is a surefire way to lose the race. Everyone needs to start somewhere. Plus, look at it from the inverse perspective. The newer generation(s) of programmers today are more likely to learn Rust to a deep level than C. And those up-and-coming developers are the maintainers of the codebase in the future.

Again, this all ties into thinking long-term vs short-term.