> Why anyone would prefer Ubuntu over Debian, which is a purer, higher quality, more mature distro, is beyond me.
For me, I view Ubuntu as the "higher quality, more mature distro" which I value over "purity".
You can argue about quality I guess, but how would Ubuntu be ‘more mature’ than Debian?
Your view does not seem to match reality, as shown by this story.
There is a reason I moved to Debian; it is not like I just like the sound of it better.