Python doesn't even have tail call recursion optimization (you'll hit a RecursionError exception if you go too deep).
Using first-class functions is great but I hesitate to call any serious use of Python "functional programming".
Using first-class functions is great but I hesitate to call any serious use of Python "functional programming".
That said, I do agree that you probably shouldn't go crazy with FP in Python. At its core, it's a procedural language. It has some useful things from OO and FP, but you'll be more comfortable if you keep procedural techniques in the top tray of your toolbox.
Which isn't all that bad a thing. IMO, well-done modern procedural programming looks a lot like functional programming with more loops and less recursion.
That being said, I agree, there's nothing wrong with taking aspects that you like (first-class functions mainly) without having to be a purist. In fact, imo purely functional languages are tedious compared to procedural languages like Python.
I'd like to find a procedural language that allows for side effects (it is still procedural programming, after all), but encourages keeping them under control. I've been toying with Nim lately, and it's been a good experience. I think that it's possible to do even better, but it's already way ahead of anything else I've tried.