Kalen,
I just don't see what spirit was being violated.
He paid the full price of a stroke penalty, and once he was told that the driving range was in bounds, he elected to go back on the line from the hole through where his ball was.
If it were me I'd have taken that drop on the first flat ground with decent grass came to, which the photo shows was across the path at the base of the dunes.
It's not Spieth's fault that they parked a bunch of tour vans there.
In fact, it appears to me that the best drop might have been directly under that Titleist truck.
Without the trucks, he'd have been ready to play in a few minutes.
The delay came once he picked hus drop location, because it was no simple task figuring out his relief from the trucks.
I hope you're not suggesting that a player who decides to take the penalty stroke should be deprived of the opportunity to drop where the rules allow.
Oh, and FWIW, the decision in the ROG regarding getting assistance when moving a loose impediment was NOT changed following the infamous incident at TOC Scottsdale.
If the same thing happened tomorrow, the player would be allowed to get help as long as it didn't unduly delay play.
And just for clarity, that decision was one of the few places the rules are clearly aimed at being "fair."
It allows a smaller, weaker player, to get help with a large impediment. IIRC the question was whether a woman could ey help with a tree limb.