The great debate - Phonics VS sight reading

My question?...................Why is this even a debate?

We have mainly done sight words with K, but my intention has always been to teach her the rules of phonics when she is old enough. In my opinion both are necessary. Today as you go through your day, pay attention to how often you need to use phonics. Very seldom right?  I hadn't thought about this until a few months ago. I was actually kind of surprised at how little I use phonics. I can go days, sometimes weeks, without needing phonics. Does this mean I think phonics is unnecessary? Not at all.  We can't learn every single word in the English language by sight, just like we can't sound out every word in a language that has many words that don't follow any rules. Both are necessary and K will be taught both.