>(one that, ironically, Canonical forced on a userbase that was unsure about it).
You don't have to use Unity. I see Unity as a potential innovation driver but something I probably won't use for a long time. You will have to switch to an unfamiliar UI, but you get to decide which one it will be. And if you use Gnome or KDE, you will have a ton of control to make the UI bend to your will (assuming you don't mind banging your head against it for a few hours to get it configured just right).
Why would the average consumer care? It is old school diehards who are angry about Gnome 2, not new consumers who are slightly more likely to switch in the light of Windows 8 upheaval.
You don't have to use Unity. I see Unity as a potential innovation driver but something I probably won't use for a long time. You will have to switch to an unfamiliar UI, but you get to decide which one it will be. And if you use Gnome or KDE, you will have a ton of control to make the UI bend to your will (assuming you don't mind banging your head against it for a few hours to get it configured just right).