[development] Data-driven database tables and updates

[Chris Johnson]

Just to play devil's advocate here:

Many programmers who "know" SQL really don't know it very well.  The number of 
really good database developers working on Drupal is smaller than the number 
of good PHP developers.  While I'm against bloat and yet another API to learn, 
one argument in favor of a Drupal database API is so that the database is 
architected by developers who really understand efficient relational database 
construction and usage, and the SQL for accessing it is likewise good -- 
instead of a more random quality we have now.