We need it all. Its not about the defacto coin, its about establishing a greater market in cryptocoins. Combined they are greater than they are individually.
So I guess I'm saying can't we all just get along?
I agree with your take on this.
I think the analogy with Linux distros is better than with most of the financial analogies I've seen bandied around.
Anyone who thought that they were going to become the new Microsoft back in the mid 90's through Linux (Caldera?) misunderstood the game completely. Almost no one has made serious money out of selling distros. Redhat bases its business model on service contracts. But the people who supported the IDEAS behind Linux are gradually winning the war with Android, etc. We don't live in the Microsoft controlled world that many people feared back then.
I would predict that the value of BTC will be gradually eroded by the alt currencies, and that that is not a bad thing. A diverse cryptocurrency ecosystem is going to be much more resilient to the threats posed by states, banks, regulators etc. than one tall poppy currency. Until there are many more alt currencies there will be a large red "X marks the target" on Bitcoin's back.
The impulse to defend any particular coin because you are invested in it is mistaken. Life just isn't that easy. It makes more sense to adapt by diversifying intelligently, and to support alt currencies in general. Which is easier to track and shut down, one big currency, or a hundred variations?