Maybe, but other games integrate psionics much better, even if as part of a universal magic system. In Blue Rose psionics are one form of arcana. Aspects of psionics are part of the various magical traditions of Shadow of the Demon Lord. Psionics are also a standard part of the Cypher System and Savage Worlds.
I agree with all that, but it seems like for a large number of posters, having psionics be integrated with magic at all make it's "non-psionic".
The designer design first, then put it through internal playtesting, then external playtesting, then the voting. They don't get people to vote on the mechanic first and then design.
Yeah, having psionics as a form of magic in a similar vein as arcane or divine magic seems like a solid way to integrate and mainstream psionics as a concept in D&D. It would undoubtedly involve some form of loss from what it was in prior editions, but I would much rather see psionics have a solid place in D&D than have it continually be relegated to the margins.
That's what I would like in an ideal world.
I don't even know how you can say this. Psionics isn't a largely demanded thing for D&D. The designers have spent the entire lifecycle of 5e trying to get a psionics that works (it started in the NEXT playtest, and continued throughout). It's very clear that they tried very hard to find a way to do psionics that was fun and pleasing to the fans. Sure, they're in business, so they have to deal with the money, but the claim that this is the only or even the most important thing to WotC with regards to designing rules is ridiculously bad. They clearly care very much about D&D and their stewardship of it. The money part mostly comes in with the realization that they need to do things well to keep making the money. I think it's incredibly weird to look at the scope and effort the designers have put into 5e and think that it was only about the money.
I like psionics as a form of divine magic, personally (although that might be my Warcraft background showing). Concepts like dedication, focus, faith, and willpower are already in the "divine magic" purview, and psionics seems like an obvious extension of that. Clerics have faith in gods/higher powers, druids commune with natural spirits, paladins focus on their obligations to others via their oaths, and psions commune with their own soul and the souls of the world around them.
Psion class with an Int-focused subclass (erudite, psicrystals, flexibility), Wis-focused subclass (classic telepath/precog), and Cha-focused subclass (Wilder, holds the Carrie/Akira tropes) seems like a layup to me.
