There are parts of my face that won't even tolerate XTG. I don't know whose kid I am, either, because my dad has always shaved ONLY against the grain, and he doesn't even get a weeper from it. To the left and right above my chin is an area that will not tolerate anything harsher than blade buffing WTG, and I can burn it even overdoing that.
So, I'd say if you can go ATG right off the bat and your skin tolerates it, you can ignore anything anyone tells you to the contrary. It's pretty easy to tell if your skin does or doesn't tolerate a certain method.
If I were to tell my dad that he should start WTG instead of just blasting it all of ATG right away like he's done for the last 50 years, he'd look at me like I was nuts.