I always interpreted "technique trumps tools" to mean that good technique is a prerequisite to getting a good shave. It also means that a bad shave due to poor technique cannot be fixed by upgrading to "better" tools. In fact, jumping around to different razors and blades at the start can be counterproductive. I agree wholeheartedly with @wchnu and the TTT folks in that regard. As with some other aspects of shaving, this reason-based rule becomes less accurate when carried to extremes.
As you noted, some razor and blade combinations, soaps, etc. just don't work for some people. Other combinations work very well. The claim bad shaves can always be cured by technique is unproven at best. If poor technique always leads to poor shaves, it does not follow that good technique always leads to good shaves. To claim otherwise is a logical fallacy, as there can be factors other than technique that lead to poor shaves.
The same thing can be seen with shaving soap. "All the tallow soaps I have tried are excellent" somehow morphs into "Tallow soaps are always better than non-tallow soaps", which simply isn't true. Kiss My Face Moisture Shave and Institut Karite are two of the better known exceptions to this illogical "rule".
Another fallacy is that far from being a money saver, taking up traditional wetshaving inevitably leads to large collections of gear and large costs. Expense in traditional shaving is up to each individual. Great shaves can be had at very low cost, very high cost, or any place in between.
Put another way: It's your shave, have it your way. If your karma runs over someone else's dogma, so be it.
