The only reason to have a default map is political.

People actually using maps and GIS pick whatever projection suits their needs - which is not Mercantor most of the time to begin with. I work with GIS a lot and never use it, unless forced by some API. But even then, reprojecting is trivial.

Why is the pole levitating in the air when it’s broken and should hang by the overhead lines.

This annoys me more than it should.