But why do the F-35 fans always point to the LPI modes of the radar then? The F-22 has EA capability

Because fighters radar are very helpful against most targets.However, VLO targets in jamming condition is not one of them

and could have whatever capability the F-35 has with proper funding

With infinite money , you can do whatever you want. But obviously funding is limited, hence the reason F-22 doesnot even have IRST or HMD eventhough these are technically flexible

Dedicated IRST work in precise wavelength for maximum performance

Hmmm, take for example OLS-35, FSO work in 3-5 microns wavelength , exactly the same as EOTS ( ofcourse EOTS also have extra CCD and SWIR sensor)
Pirate , AAS-42 works in 8-10 microns wavelength , which is similar to DAS. So i dont see much different there either

They are also optimized for fast scanning

This doesnot make sense. There is no real reason why a “pure” IRST ( AAS-42 , OLS-35 , or FSO ..etc) should be able to scan faster than a “not pure” IRST like EOTS. In fact ,many “pure” IRST such as AAS-42 or Tiger eye or OLS-35 are scanning array , which mean they would definitely search the FoV at much slower rate compared to staring array like on DAS or EOTS.
Moreover, if some IRST actually scan faster than EOTS , then how much faster are they ? 1% ? 2 % or 10% ?.

The Advanced EOTS may approach the capabilities of a pure IRST, but probably not equate them. The regular EOTS is probably significantly inferior

IMHO there is literally zero evidence to support that assessment.I can easily say a pure IRST is significantly inferior to regular EOTS and there would be equal chance of my assessment to be correct

The F-35 can stay subsonic, but that gives the F-22 a better ability to escape if it flies in supersonic. I don’t think it would need to fly at mach 1.7 either. Launching in supersonic would also give its AIM-9Xs a better BVR range

You can’t really escape from something you can’t see.Moreover going faster generate more IR signature as well, not always a good thing

Sticking with reality is accepting the fact that the F-35 has cost 20 billion more than it should have, thus severly reducing the funding that could have been allocated to upgrading other aircraft, right?

May be it is , but that is not the question of the thread