No to take both sides of this but I would venture to guess in years to come we are going to see the same nightmares from MDF that we did in the 80's/90's with "particle board junk". The core is only as durable as the finish applied and the use/care it sees from the end user.
The instant the finish is compromised MDF is no different, perhaps worse, that particle board.
The difference today as compared to the 80's/90's is the big boxes and the internet have changed the consumers mindset to disposable, and constant upgrade for fashion. So when they buy a dog-sh)t MDF door (cabinet or otherwise) and it falls apart in 5-8-10 years, the are ready for a change anyway so it is what it is. Its like throwing away your entire faucet because it drips. Or throwing your dishwasher out to the end of the driveway for scrap because a little plastic clip broke.
The issue to me from an individual like Chad is how do you pitch that dog-sh(t level of work (no offense Chad) and not have the consumer come back on you even though they said they were ok with cheap.
You just have to make it clear in evey way, six ways to Sunday, what they are asking for and telling you to proceed with.
Broken record here with David that it'd be nice if we were all in a positon refuse in principal MDF. Im lucky to use the material only for spoil boards on the CNC. That said it could change in an instant that I need to chase those dollars.
The real problem is consumers will buy an ultra dog-sh)t MDF product from the home center and chaulk it up to "we knew we were buying cheap". They can buy the exact same dog-sh(t from a "cabinet maker", that last twice as long as the home center, but when it fails they will ride the small shop down to the end of the world that "well... we did say cheap but we didnt mean THAT cheap".
There is no good answer. If I were to lock into Davids philosophy I'd be more broke than I am right now. If I went down the MDF hell hole I'm sure I'd have a bunch of customers riding me down for crap doors and I'd be trying to explain to them that when you beat the crap out of your powdered wood cabs they just wont last.
Take your pick