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I believe you're reading something else out of my analogy than what I tried to say; I was making a point about the effectiveness of the method, not the message as such.

Everybody agrees we should drive carefully, and everybody agrees we should not revert to pre-antibiotic treatment of infections. How did we address the former? Through moral admonition and personal prudence? (That was a rhetorical question)

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One way we addressed the former was to put up signs that say "Drive Carefully", so apparently your dislike of that technique is not universal. It's called a "nudge", and it has significant (but limited) effect.

I'm not disputing that, but sometimes when we weigh our actions, significant (but limited) alternatives will not cut it, and if the effect is limited enough (and the problem severe enough), even deliberating on them will waste precious time to enact direct and (hopefully) effective action.

Woah, so even debating this issue is wasting precious time? I know this seems to be super-important to you, but for someone who complained about getting short shrift (in another comment), you might try using different language next time.

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