A soft-forked change cannot be mandatory, it will always be opt-in, by definition.
Enhancing Bitcoin privacy is a must, and not for "die-hard" reasons. The privacy of transacting in a form of money affects it's effectiveness in performing the role of being money. The goal is to implement and popularise a form of independent electronic money, and so compromising Bitcoin's money characteristics is obviously anathema to that goal.
Agreed. I am always surprised that users might be happy with "partial" anonymity. I can achieve full privacy but it takes a bunch of effort and lots of internet experience to achieve it. Why not make it easy and in fact default?
Agreed^2. People tend to think, “I have nothing to hide”. And they forget that is really, “I have nothing to hide right now”. One never knows the type of despot who could take over. Most people in Venezuela thought they had “nothing to hide” 25 years ago, then a socialist dictator took over and I’m sure many then realized, it is a good thing to have because he destroyed the country. Ditto Cyprus.
It happens everywhere and those are just the big things. Do you really want your landlord to know you got a raise, or your boss knowing your rent?