Comment by shawnz
Consider a simple example where you're checking if a file exists, or a database object exists, and creating it if not. Imagine your filesystem or database library either doesn't have an upsert function to do this for you, or else you can't use it because you want some special behaviour for new records (like writing the current timestamp or a running total, or adding an entry to a log file, or something). I think this is a simple, common example where you would want to combine a conditional with an action. I don't think it's very "odd" or indicative of "way too much logic".
> a database object exists, and creating it if not. Imagine your filesystem or database library either doesn't have an upsert function to do this for you, or else you can't use it because you want some special behaviour for new records (like writing the current timestamp or a running total, or adding an entry to a log file, or something).
This is why databases have transactions.
> simple example where you're checking if a file exists
Personally I avoid interacting directly with the filesystem like the plague due to issues exactly like this. Working with a filesystem correctly is way harder than people think it is, and handling all the edge-cases is unbelievably difficult. If I'm building a production system where correctness is important, then I use abstractions like databases to make sure I don't have to deal with filesystem nuances myself.