I wonder if it's not the difficulty or features that keep some people from joining the #fediverse, I wonder if most people are shy about making overt political commitments.
Because to be sure, using #Mastodon or #Firefish is a defiant and overt political act. It says a lot about what a person thinks is important, and what they are willing to be inconvenienced by in order for us all to achieve something as a society.
Speculation: Once a political statement has been made though, it's probably more damaging socially or psychologically to abandon it. Leading people to be shy of politically progressive acts that might fail to get to critical mass.
