I currently carry a 5" Springfield Armory 1911 stoked with 230 gr Gold Dots. As soon as my M&P9 arrives from G and R Tactical, I will begin the transition process to the 9mm. I have made this choice for many of the same reasons stated above, but I'll list mine anyway:
Ease of use/follow-up
Reasonable terminal performance with top loads
Ammo capacity
Modern design platform in the M&P
Lower cost of ownership/operation
Hopefully, with less recoil, I can finally get my wife interested
Also, I'm new here. Joined up after hearing good things about ToddG and pistol-training.com.
I look forward to learning from people who know WAAAAAY more than me.