[SomeCallMeTim]

Bingo!

As problems get more complex, the amount of time to complete them can go exponential for some developers. I've been forced to work with people like that; it really can be the case that some developers (who are otherwise competent) would simply never finish tasks that involve a crucial level of complexity.

And EVEN at just about any nontrivial level of complexity, where the time spent is only in the 1.5x-2x realm, the code written by the awesome programmer will likely be easier to understand, shorter, and easier to maintain.

Huge articles like the one linked are simply written by (and for!) the average competent programmer, to make them feel better. If you haven't worked with developers with a huge range of productivity, then you either haven't worked with a really good developer, or you've somehow lucked out and never worked with a poor developer. Statistically, it's likely the former.