I just hope that who ever ends up winning the users are not the losers.

It might depend on how you look at it.

That they have learned that knee jerk reactions and economic sanctions do not, and never have, and never will work in the walking world or the typing/clicking world.

I don't think they have learned this. Part of crypto is that there is freedom of choice outside of the normal rules of the game.

Nothing about SMT's

There was talk in the PAL discord about continuing development and release with the devs.