"The enthusiast is far more educated in their needs and wants and why they need or want that object than to non enthusiast in most cases."
Where does this education come from?... yeah, that is the problem. It isn't about non-enthusiasts knowing more, it is about a simpler set of needs and a price ranges that places them in a different market.
" And the reason SRAM or Shimano aren’t making single chainring road bikes is because they don’t make bikes they make components"
You don't say? They don't make bikes, but they market their components for certain uses, like this:
http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...lmooZPHh6MzoDg
http://www.bikeradar.com/news/articl...-gruppo-20569/
Single speed cross and MTB racing is growing quickly, races are adding single-speed categories, and Scram does make the necessary components but there no such marketing campaign for single-speed group-sets. It isn't that they are evil or anything like that, it is simply that there isn't enough money in flip-flop hubs and freewheels to make marketing then pay off.
"But no one has to buy a 10 speed cassette if they don't want one and an individual is a better judge of their needs than a someone that isn't living in their shoes."
The individual makes decisions based on the information he or she is given.
"I would be interested in one because I see little advantage to cutting my gear selection with so many mountain roads close to where I live.
"
I assume you meant to say that you wouldn't be interested.
I highly suggest sitting down with a calculator and checking on the range of gearing ratios with a 49t single ring and a 11-34 mountain cassette. It's about the same as as a standard 55/39 x 12-26 setup.
"Fixies make shiftless riding not only possible but easy.
Or you could simply get a SS. So once again the consumer could do just as you suggest and yet they don’t."
Either So cal and the Northwest have very different cycling cultures, or you are living under a rock. Fixies are everywhere around here, at the local cross and mountain bike races there are more SS bikes every year, and the local cross series added a SS category this year. That is neither her nor their, however, I'm talking about road bikes and to keep up in a group ride, depending on the terrain, certain gearing ranges are necessary. This is a need that can be met without a frond derailleur. You can't tell me people don't want lighter, more reliable bikes with essentially the same capabilities at no additional cost. People just don't know that it's possible, and there can't be a demand for something people don't know exists.