On why checkpointing is not there, my guess would be it was pretty much decided long back.
It
could be true, but it
looks like it was not there, because if it was put to vote, nobody would vote for it. If you are honest about your idea, and honestly expect people to like it, then you would not mind putting it to a vote. The mere fact, that this was done secretly, and never put to a vote (that's why feedback section exists), is a huge red flag for me.