I live in the woods in the northeast US, and also grew up in the 80s-90s in a very rural area and I've owned a number of cars when I was young, some with comically dim lights.

You really don't need the bright lights. You never have. Slow down, look for movement, and use your brights intelligently.

Growing up in rural New England it seemed that people were constantly hitting deer with their cars—slowing down is obviously a good idea, but every additional foot of headlight distance certainly helps for spotting the glint of an eyeball on the side of the road.

In a densely wooded area, no. Your sight line is naturally blocked by trees, so a farther throw of light would be wasted

In more open areas it can be quite helpful to have greater throw and flood illumination.

In the American Midwest, being able to spot ice patches or deer on the interstate with your brights is quite helpful.

Normal driving lights have no need for the intensity they have today though

I also live in the woods in the northeast US, also grew up in a very rural area (in the 70s-80s), and I still own a few 70s and 80s cars with comically dim lights. Yeah, they're not good. 1) They're very noticeably worse comparing them back to back to modern cars, and 2) my eyes are no longer young. Can I drive with them? Sure. Is it less safe? You bet.

Slow down is kind of the general tip, but I find it kinda BS. I can drive slowly focusing on the bushes on the way to/from work in bumfuck nowhere, or I can get some beacon of god aux LEDs for cheap and turn night into day.

we're not talking about the northeast US

and sure, you don't need to drive over 20mph on a 60mph limit road ...