...and a nerve.
rw nailed it in 513.
The cycling industry makes its profit by selling unnecessary technology to those who can afford it, and many who cannot. No one needs it, but when you throw choice in there, the industry licks its chops. Nothing illegal or wrong about it though.
Regarding the Tour data from a 45 year span, allow me to draw a comparison in Baseball. 100 years ago, a groundout to short was typically an out. It still is today, otherwise someone would have hit .400 since Ted. Even with doping in both sports. This is why you don't see huge swings on the improvement curve of any sport, and sometimes even see retrograde in performance from year to year. Of course all sports have different variables, but my point is that if a power meter for example were the key to achieving cycling greatness, there would be fewer of us Freds out there, and it simply is not the case.
A power meter is a toy, just like my bike is.
I may have missed it, but did BDop chime in yet? He knows this topic from more sides than most of us.
good post, but I'd say it a bit differently in that there are people who want to pay for and own what a professional uses, and that's why we have $12,000 Madone 7.9's with Di2 and expensive information devices like whatever power device you choose. Multi-thousand dollar Zips. And for fun they can compare their numbers to a pro's (because some of that is available)...and we are happy to sell all of that stuff to the people who want it.
Knock yourself out. If it makes you happy, and you have the cash, go for it.