Guarding Against Mud (back blip for Wed)

Why don't most bicycles have mudguards fitted these days? Is it a macho cyclist thing, where getting a sodden backside and muddy splashtop is a rite of passage and all part of the back-to-nature joy of urban cycling?

Anyway, as you can see, I'm now thoroughly fed up with it, and on Wednesday I fitted mudguards to my bike. In order to fit this rear one and still have a visible rear reflector, I needed to raise the saddle by a couple of inches, but that was overdue anyway as I'd known for a while that it was too low.