Tiny white root aphids, and the insect ID journey

I was weeding my garden today. Mostly weeding in my new style, that is, using scissors to chop the weed at its base and leave the roots in the ground. I don't have many weeds, but there were a number of lamb's quarters that I thought I'd chop and drop.

Anyway, I saw a different weed... reminded me of sow thistle, but it wasn't that. I decided to pull it right out. The whole tap root came out (probably 8 inches long) and I saw a bunch of little 1 - 2 mm long white things all over the root...let's say a couple dozen of them. Kind of like tiny grains of rice. At first I thought they were some kind of root nodule. Then I noticed they were moving.

Got out the little hand-held magnifier (like a mini microscope) and took a look. I LOVE this little tool. It makes me want to get a real microscope, but for now it does the trick, and I could see the tiny white thing as a pretty huge thing in my viewfinder. So I sketched it.

Next I hit up the internet. Apparently (95% sure) they're root aphids. They are similar to regular leaf aphids, but of course live under the soil and feed on roots. They're quite a pest in some places, and can be very hard to get rid of, especially in greenhouses. They can bore holes in the root and leave plants vulnerable to mildew and disease.

Reproduction is asexual. There are no males, and (just like with ordinary aphids) females give birth to live offspring. They may be able to lay eggs as well, but it was not entirely clear in my reading.

Anyway, in my case, they were congregated on a weed root. Which led me to think some thoughts:

1. Is this a benefit of leaving a few weeds in the ground? Maybe certain weeds can act as trap crops for root aphids and other things, so they avoid your real crop.

2. OR, is the yummy weed variety simply attracting the root aphids, and then they go eat your other stuff?

3. Are they simply an important (or at least not-too-terrible) part of the soil food web, and it will all balance out over time as I build healthy soil? Maybe there are some underground critters who just adore a snack of root aphids.

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Does anyone here have experiences with root aphids? Any thoughts on my thoughts? Can anyone identify the weed?

I'll share a few pictures. I don't have the ability to take good pictures of tiny things. The first picture is my handy little microscope/magnifier. The next is the best picture my phone could take of the weed with its insects. Then is a sketch of what they look like close up.

I don't know how to attach pics from the internet. Can someone add one, or teach me how to do it? Thanks.