I think people downplay the importance of generating assets outside of exchange ecosystem when they make the argument, why mine when you can buy on an exchange. If you believe in the long term valuation of cryptos, why not mine? The concept of mining at a loss only comes into play if you intend on selling at every block reward. If done properly, those mined cryptos will exist independent of KYC and other entanglements. If you look at mineable cryptos that can be used to build masternodes/staking/etc., you can build a sustainable source of income that is compartmentalized from other activities.