I understand and agree with what you are saying. I'm not tyranicaly (word?) argueing against them.
To perhaps clarify, I agree and like the idea of having to aquire better gear in order to progress through difficult content, but not to the extent that absolute optimiziation is required. i.e. not having optained every datacron, or not having every slot in your gear being outfitted with epics being a cause of rude, often hurtfully mean discrimination and belittlement and exclusion to content.
as stated before, gear is a good indicator of ability to complete difficult tasks. I just like the IDEA of being able to adjust play and account for or take advantage of different levels of players gear / ability.
A lot of this is the nature of the MMO, I understand this. I'm not asking for any change, just stating an opinion and was curious to other's thoughts.
when it's all said and done, it boils down to teaming with players with a similar mindset and playstyle. maybe I'd just like that to be more available other than months of trial and error. a LFG system for like minded players per say.
I'm NOT asking for any change just an open discussion on the topic. -- at work with the game on my mind