I'm mystified about the Roth hubbub, but maybe I'm just missing the boat.
When I try to compare a traditional IRA to a Roth, the Roth ALWAYS comes out behind. That's because I insist on comparing apples to apples and equate a $2K pre-tax contribution to a traditional IRA with a $1440 Roth contribution (taking account of the fact that I will need to pay an additional $560 of taxes @28% on the now-taxable money). The Roth never recovers from this lower input, regardless of assumed investment returns or time horizons. The larger pie earns more money, and wins even though I have to pay taxes when withdrawing money...there's more than 28% more money at the end.
Comparing the returns on $2K contributions to both plans just isn't honest (and therefore not Foolish).
So, other than inheritance differences, why should I even consider a Roth?