Who in the world wants runny mashed potatoes?  I'm with the author on part of this - - they need to mound up in the bowl like a mountain in order to be real mashed potatoes.

But I have never, and never will, put GARLIC in my mashed taters. I also would NEVER use Yukon Gold potatoes, as recommended in the article.  YUK!  They're the worst tasting thing since burned cherry pie!! I couldn't think of anything worse just at this moment . . .

https://thefederalist.com/2019/11/18/dont-try-those-reinvented-mashed-potatoes-for-thanksgiving-use-this-no-fail-classic/

I make them like my mama did and her mama before her.  Ditto for my other (paternal) gramma, too.

We used peeled red potatoes cut into fairly small hunks, boil slowly until fork tender, drain (save the liquid to add to the gravy) and mash with a real live potato masher, not in the mixer, and add a big ol' clump of butter and real, farm-fresh cream.  Now THOSE were mashed potatoes.  We kept the cream to a minimum and just added a little at a time until the desired consistency was reached.  Once in a while on holidays, just to be fancy, my mom would top the taters in the bowl before serving, with a dash of paprika - mostly for the color.

I still make them this very simple way, no changes.  When others request my "recipe" they cannot believe the simplicity that evokes that marvelous taste.  Now I go the extra dollar, however, to buy organic potatoes because no one wants all the chemicals which are nowadays sprayed on every crop in sight.  It's disgusting.

Try them my way and you won't regret it.  The gravy (if you know how to make it taste wonderful) will give the taters an extra delicious flavor, too.  Sometimes I just slap the plain ol' mashed taters on my plate, put on an extra dollop of butter, no gravy, and chow down.  They are wonderful.