I agree with the post. However what I have noticed going from DA 2 to DAI to potential future DA games is how bad the whole red lyrium situation went from being unimportant in DA 2 to kind of a semi common place thing in DA I and I frankly feel it may become a epidemic as Verric fears in future DA stuff.
I also do agree that if you play the templar storyline that yes the templars are trying red lyrium to get better and stronger and even have it as a means to crush the mages but of course they themselves do not know the +'s and -'s of red lyrium when they are so use to the traditional amounts and know the minuses where it causes addiction. As far as the whole Meredith thing is the templars feel "Oh....she used waaaaaaayyy to much. If we use a little that won't happen to us". Of course even a tiny bit causes ugly mutation. They just only know after the fact.
Also the templars are not really dumber than mud, they are just drug dependant. Like most addicts sometimes they want to try the latest craze. In this case....red lyrium is the latest craze.
Also notice the red lyrium was going from the top down. The leadershi was infected first, and they in turn give it to their subordinates, and so on.
Byt the time you get to Champions of the Just, there are no high ranking Templars left alive and uninfected. And few veterans, even.