Those same clicks can be used by everyone

By anyone who knows about them (who have installed Windows before and searched it up).

Speculation, not based on facts.

MS didn’t tell us directly that local accounts are a thing of the past, but you can easily tell where they’re going with this. From local accounts being just an option to having to not setup a network (It won’t let you go back after selecting one and clicking “next”) to not allowing you to proceed unless you run a command. The next logical step (Yes this is still speculation) is to limit local accounts to business versions of the OS in preparation to remove them entirely.

Only if you know what you are doing. So exactly the same boat as you put Windows in.

You’re telling me that if you give a random person a live Linux mint / Ubuntu / Endeavor / Manjaro / any non-elitist distro’s usb, they wouldn’t be able to click next and choose a username and password? I find it hard to believe, but even if that was the case, It would be because of a misunderstanding or unintentional bad UI/UX, not the OS acting against your will.

At some point changing the default browser required setting each file type’s default app one by one. Using a local account once was a normal option then it became hidden and required setting up some questions then you had to disconnect from Wi-Fi and now it’s not a visible option and you have to get around it with some command. This may take you some clicks when you’ve already installed Windows before, but it’s heading towards simply not being an option, and setting up a usable Linux installation is already much easier today.

I probably cannot get Windows to be the way I like it. They make every change I want to make a pain, and the ways to circumvent their shenanigans are always changing. Setting up a local account, changing your default browser, stopping onedrive from wasting your time, all of these should be quick and simple changes, but they just wouldn’t let you choose for yourself, they have to shove their products and settings down your throat with every new installation, update, and misclick. I spent more than an hour setting up a new installation and I still find new ways Edge can start itself, I cannot imagine the time it would take for me to make this as usable as a simple Linux installation with some changes to the DE.

A new Linux installation is usually usable and you spend an hour tailoring it to your specific needs. While in a new Windows installation I spend the first hour remembering things that’ll start popping up/executing in the background and disabling them just to get it to a usable state.