So if (when?) a hardfork spooks the hell out of a lot of possibly uninformed people... and they all start dumping BTC (and/or BTU) and the prices plummet to ~$100... and your coins are now worth only 10% of what they are today... then that isn't a loss of value?

Of course, that could not happen and people could just hum along and the value could stay or grow... but history would tend to indicate that is not likely to happen. People generally want stability... not uncertainty and chaos.

You are, however, certainly correct in your assertion that it is a power play... some very egocentric, greedy people who can't/won't admit defeat... and are only interested in their own wealth. Meanwhile, a lot of the "rank and file" users are going to end up getting hammered.