I use rainbow flip flops and flat pedals. Dont let anybody convince you that you need anything else to be comfortable, efficient and have fun.

I think alot of people like clips because they are not used to flats. There IS a learning curve to using flats IMO, just as there is with clips. If somebody jumps right onto flats from clips sure it feels weird, give it time and it all smooths out.

As cliche as it is, this really makes alot of sense and parallels my thoughts to a T:

http://www.rivbike.com/article/clothing/the_shoes_ruse