To declaw or not to declaw?

In my lifetime I have had two cats. Both were adopted from friends. The female (no longer living) had her claws and the male does not have his claws in the front. The male was declawed before I adopted him. Oddly enough, he still attempts to "sharpen" his claws against rough surfaces although he doesn't actually have claws any longer.  This behavior got me to thinking the other day. Obviously, declawing him was to the benefit of the previous owner. However, are we taking away part of our cats' identities when we have their claws taken away?  

To put this in context, imagine if you have lived a portion of your life with your finger nails. You are used to pealing oranges, scratching your skin, opening packages, and a bunch of other things that you probably take for granted. Imagine if you suddenly had your nails permanently removed and had to re-adjust your life.  It wouldn't be an easy adjustment.  Perhaps you would never get used to it.  

Thinking about this, I now feel sorry for my little guy. Sure, he still has fun and enjoys his life. But I can't help but think he has moments in his day where he feels like a part of him is missing. Since I kept my female cat's claws trimmed to a level where she could still do some minor scratching but cause no real damage, I know that this could have been the case for my male cat.  But he will never again know what it's like to scratch something or to climb his cat tree by pulling himself up.  What say you epic venters?