Rails views, web components, React. Why make a choice?

How many times have you heard or read statements like these in tech discussions? "Everything needs to be a single-page app these days. Server-rendered templates are holding you back." "Web components are the future. Why tie yourself to any framework?" "Islands architecture is the way forward. We were right about server-rendered templates all along!" "Just use React for everything. That's what Meta uses, right?" Each opinion delivered with absolute conviction, each speaker certain they've found the One True Path to front-end enlightenment. We've had plenty of these discussions at Aha! too. But somewhere between the enthusiastic debates about client-side versus server-side rendering, we realized something interesting: These technologies aren't mutually exclusive. In fact, they can work together remarkably well. This isn't a story about hedging our bets or failing to make a decision. It's about how we discovered that Rails views, web components, React, and Rails ViewComponents each have their sweet spots.