Maybe all of this should be an optional feature of HTTP servers and browsers with graceful fallback? NGINX could have a module that understands JavaScript and CSS and bundles and caches things on the fly, enabled optionally.
It would greatly simplify deployment to have the source and deployed code be identical. Obfuscation aside, given JS is an interpreted language, there is no reason to not use it for what it is. We've turned deploying JS into the same level of complexity as deploying C++ by adding building and packaging steps. Interpreted languages should never need build steps, and deployment should be no more than a simple rsync.
It would greatly simplify deployment to have the source and deployed code be identical. Obfuscation aside, given JS is an interpreted language, there is no reason to not use it for what it is. We've turned deploying JS into the same level of complexity as deploying C++ by adding building and packaging steps. Interpreted languages should never need build steps, and deployment should be no more than a simple rsync.