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I think that the whole diplomacy discussion is a matter of taste and how much fun you're having. I lean towards the "please role play this" because if a session was:
"The town watch is unfriendly."
"I use diplomacy to get him to let me in. [rolls 18]."
"You succeed. He lets you in."
You might as well be playing Colossal Cavern.
I have much more fun with:
"The night watchman leans over the wall. "What do you want?!" he yells, spitting voluminously near where you stand in the shadows."
"We've just got back from saving this rat-hole of a town, and now we want to spend our hard earned cash in your brothels and inns. There'll be free drinks at the Grob and Ducat if you just let us through the gate without any hassle."
Bottom line, at your own table you are god and if your players don't like the way you run the rules and can't convince you to run them a different way they can either stop playing or put up with it. Most choose put up with it because they're still having fun even if they disagree with you.