Are you insinuating that Ubuntu is just a Debian with a different name slapped on it? If that is the case, then you must not have used Ubuntu at all.
As a Ubuntu user, I like the Ubuntu Software Center and being able to install Skype and Dropbox through it and not having to scour the web for packages compatible with my system. I like some Unity features such as the dash and the HUD, because they greatly simplify discoverability of features that I do not use on a daily basis. I like the fact that Canonical certifies Ubuntu on a variety of hardware and I can therefore purchase my next laptop or server with the knowledge that my preferred OS will work fine on it.
I could go on, but I don't think there is any need - it's pretty clear that Canonical makes a lot of things happen apart from building .deb packages.
Canonical adds all the fun stuff and Debian adds all the boring stuff. But, you can't have the fun stuff without the boring stuff, and it's easy to argue that Ubuntu would not exist without Debian. Letting the user kick a few bucks back to the Debian Foundation wouldn't be the most horrible thing ever.
(I do use Ubnutu, BTW, but regret the decision on a regular basis. I especially like waiting 15 seconds to get a shell prompt because it's checking for package updates to display while I'm logging in. The 15 seconds after each typo'd command is also enjoyable. "Did you mean to install the package sl?" No. No I did not. Ever. </rant>)
On the wait-to-run-commands thing: I've been starting to familiarise myself with the redhat ecosystem and... it's crazy. Want to get yum to provide some installation info on a package on your system? Please wait while we check the servers for any updates...
As a Ubuntu user, I like the Ubuntu Software Center and being able to install Skype and Dropbox through it and not having to scour the web for packages compatible with my system. I like some Unity features such as the dash and the HUD, because they greatly simplify discoverability of features that I do not use on a daily basis. I like the fact that Canonical certifies Ubuntu on a variety of hardware and I can therefore purchase my next laptop or server with the knowledge that my preferred OS will work fine on it.
I could go on, but I don't think there is any need - it's pretty clear that Canonical makes a lot of things happen apart from building .deb packages.