[yoloClin]

I don't disagree with anything you've said, but in my opinion strongly typed function definitions/returns are about communication rather than dictation - I'd rather the compiler tell me that I'm passing an unexpected argument type rather than the runtime executor.

But to contradict your point, there's also a fair amount of Python which is a dictation - Guido even called his job role 'Benevolent dictator for life'. I really hated some of the guidelines as a new programmer but after dealing with them for some time I understand that consistency is far more important than preference in many/most/all cases.