<p>I think that we should interpret this carefully and conservatively. The quoted snippet is typical of the "developer" mindset, focused entirely on a narrow praxis and largely ignorant of theory. Considering the many risks of naively and improperly applied mathematical practices to the field of statistics, it seems appropriate to make sure that people aren't just learning to operate a (possibly dangerous) machine, but also to understand why it does what it does.</p>

<p>If the question asks about theory or theory-aware practice, I think it's on topic. If someone has no interest in the difference between <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lies,_damned_lies,_and_statistics" rel="nofollow noreferrer">"lies, damned lies, and statistics"</a> and just wants to learn to write code, then I suppose it's off to Stack Overflow with them.</p>
