I worked for a company in the 80's and 90's, if you did not have on a ground strap on the production floor, it was grounds for termination on the spot (they were on our shoes and we had conductive carpet). We were in Florida, the humidity is high here and we had a plant in Puerto Rico too, so static is rare.. Main office Kanata, Canada (cold and dry) lots of static..
Anyway, it is better to be careful, but I never blow them either (like hyedenny said), BUT I out of habit, touch the metal case of something plugged in with a ground, like the back of a PC power supply to discharge myself or the ground on my scope.
The static electricity can weaken the chips (blows little holes in the junctions and material inside), and the chip CAN fail sooner than it was designed. Much sooner in some cases. At least all the pictures we had on the walls showed that.
And hey, I would not want to be on some wild rollercoaster ride in Orlando and find this out.
So, if hobby stuff, your call. Work for a mass production company, they do not want boards back or failing (especially if under warranty)