Agreed...this is a breath of fresh air that, imho, the community needs right now. Clear, concise, well-written code can do wonders for a project...don't jump to a framework just because it's the trend.
His "punk movement" is more of a "I don't want to use things I have to learn" complaint. I defy any PHP developer to assert that the majority of development is made faster by spending your days bolting together that which already exists.