[mixmastamyk]

I think keeping it ugly does Django a disservice. People associate the hideous yellow on cyan header with it and might think ... oh that rails/node stuff looks more professional (less like it was created by 90's-IT-guy). No matter that the issues are orthogonal, people aren't aware of the nuances.

The widgets are fine-looking, though increasingly dated. Why not outsource this work to someone who cares about it? Its community must dwarf Django's.

There's some truth to your statement about encouragement, but it reminds me of the phrase, don't "cut off your nose to spite your face." Plus, it isn't the author's place to dictate how the user will use it.