Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason wrote:
I support all three points on your list (why do you want to keep <br> and <pre>?)
First, I didn't say anything about <br> and <pre>, and second, we need to keep those because there's no equivalent for them in the wikisyntax.
Some people believe that there should not be a <br> or an equivalent. I can sort of appreciate this sentiment, because <br> is very often used in completely inappropriate contexts. Many contexts where <br> is currently believed to be useful and legitimate can be replaced with a new, more appropriate wiki-syntax.