That philosophy is probably part of the reason, why linux on the desktop stays in its small niche inside tech circles.
Most people, myself included, indeed want a system that "just works" - to get the actual work done. And then if the basics work, I can enjoy the full freedom to tweak it to my needs in infinity.
But only very few people enjoy "freedom to tinker", when it means "mandatory tinkering" to get basic functionality.
My best linux times were indeed, when stuff just worked. I was really surprised the first time I used a live Linux cd and everything "just worked". No manual driver installing, like I had known from windows. It booted up and everything was just there.
It was different, but it worked. And then I discovered the endless possibilities and freedom to change ANYTHING.
But fast forward to today: my quite modern laptop still has standby/resume issues on linux, making it hard to enjoy it at times. And I don't feel like compiling the kernel myself to maybe see a slight improvement.