Python

Only to a certain extent.

The problem is that a lot of software is very complex and requires full-time development/maintenance. It's simply not possible to work on stuff for free unless this is just a hobby and you can sustain yourself with a main job.

The main thing I have a problem with this instance is the following sequence of events

1. The developer licensed it as LGPL.
2. They did not accept ANY contributions to the code.
3. The project became popular enough for people to post about in the fediverse (quite popular then, I guess)
4. They got donations for their work, but apparently it was not enough.
5. They removed the project from being accessible and moved to a paid only model.

This tells me:

1. Their intention all along was to abuse FOSS community for popularity, traction, clout and free testing by people who are also doing this stuff in their free time.
2. They got donations, but for whatever reason it was not enough for them. => Were they expecting to make retirement level income from their project which is in a crowded segment?