It is for some companies. Or just do very crude estimates like "this might take 3-5 weeks" even for things that might take 1 week but could take 6 weeks.
Sometimes it is better to start developing and then tell stakeholders that it will take a really long time when you run into problems. A lot of stakeholders have problems with estimates of the form "it could take 2 days or 3 weeks". It would be nice if the industri starts giving probability about estimates especially when you know that there are two clear possibillties where one is much, much larger. They might want to invest 2 days into trying to solve the problem with the understanding that it might take much more time and if that happens they can change their mind and skip the feature instead, "only" wasting two days of investigation.
You can commit to an investment with no idea, at all, whether it will cost more than the benefit it delivers. I suppose "not an option" isn't quite the right wording. It's an option.
That's not what it means. You have to be diligent in asking properly and vetting the rules for what's to be done. It may also include gate meeting type things and regular status reporting. You just don't downshift the project into high torque when some phony date rises up.
I don't remember if it's "Mythical Man Month" or Thomas deMarco where I'd read it. They're better at explaining it than I.
Sometimes it is better to start developing and then tell stakeholders that it will take a really long time when you run into problems. A lot of stakeholders have problems with estimates of the form "it could take 2 days or 3 weeks". It would be nice if the industri starts giving probability about estimates especially when you know that there are two clear possibillties where one is much, much larger. They might want to invest 2 days into trying to solve the problem with the understanding that it might take much more time and if that happens they can change their mind and skip the feature instead, "only" wasting two days of investigation.