> The best tool for this job was to improve the Ruby version by way of C extensions, or write a new C command that does this work for you, linking in the Git and SVN code directly. This has little to no new concepts, is straightforward, and would have given you the best compatibility and performance.

Favoring "little to no new concepts" at least suggests a bias against certain kinds of learning. Sometimes learning a new concept is the best way to solve a problem.