> Is there any discussion as to why they didn't seek an alternate plan

The Captain chose not to, because he "wasn't afraid of clouds" (see my comment above). This was a huge mistake.

But Captains are in charge of their route and it makes sense; it would be incredibly bureaucratic and dangerous if routes were decided from a central command somewhere at the airline headquarters...

What we need are humble pilots; there should be psychological evaluation to weed out those who think they are John Wayne hunting down Indians.

Part of the difficulty is that the job attracts daredevils -- among others: that night, all other Captains went around the storm...

Would the weather radar not being set up correctly have played a part in the reasoning of the captain?