The balance between safety and speed is critical to efficiency in the backcountry. I have known two folks who have rappelled off the end of their ropes, both to their death. In both cases, neither kept logical or rational about what they were doing. Both panicked. That being said, I see some folks take way to long to descend a route. Practicality, efficiency and speed can save being benighted at dangerous elevation during bad weather. I believe two years ago, a group of individuals made a cluster #%@* for themselves and the park rescue service on Bugaboo Spire, all because of messing around, thinking they were being ultra safe when in reality they were digging a hole for themselves on the very straight forward and easy Kain descent. Their lack of speed and efficiency cost the provincial park a rescue and could have cost them their lives in those temps in that particular situation.
I have yet to lose a rope and I have rapped over a 1000 multi pitch routes, yet folks lose ropes on the simplest most well traveled routes out there. I remember one interesting individual leaving a rope on Cat in the Hat of all places and asking if one of us locals would go retrieve it and send it to him! Pulling a rope correctly, managing it correctly along with the rappels is actually not a complicated science, but does deserve more attention than folks apparently are allowing for.