>Doesn't mean they are still the best answer for all situations.
Red herring. No one claimed all situations except you.
>And comparing a car to a dishwasher is more than a bit silly.
I didn't claim they're the same. I illustrated, correctly, that a microprocessor allows better analysis of sensor data than oldschool analog systems could. If old analog systems provided the functionality or cost savings a microprocessor could, then those would be used. Claiming designers simply put them in designs solely because they can is more than a bit silly, however.
>few designers have the electronics backgrounds to design circuits without microprocessors
I don't think you're in tune with electronics designers. I think all of them I know (a dozen+) all design systems with and without MCUs as needed. It's easier to design without, mostly since those are usually quite simple systems. When you can get a MCU for under a dime (and very powerful ones under $1), it's simply stupid to design complex systems with anything other than a MCU.
Have you designed, professionally for commercial products, either MCU based or old analog systems?