Thanks, Jack. I like having as much information as I can get, and your post was very informative.
As a Debian user (not developer), I find init files way too complicated and limited in their capabilities. Systemd is a tremendous improvement. I have no doubt that it has its flaws, but I think its widespread adoption is a matter of quality, not corporate takeover, as the OP seems to suggest. If a system works better, why shouldn't it be adopted? That it's developed by Redhat is really irrelevant to the question of whether it's a good choice, or a better choice than System V or any other, though I do understand Jack's point about being dependent on another set of developers.
Rather than disband the tech-ctte, I suggest that anyone unhappy about the change simply not use systemd. One of the things i love about Linux is its level of customization available, and as was pointed out, systemd is the default, but not the only option.