..except, if you want to add logging/metrics/other logic, it's quite possible you'll want it to be conditional on the boolean anyway, bringing branching back, now mixed with the non-branching code.
And even if you don't need to keep an if statement in mind, you still need to keep the variable in mind anyway.
And even if you don't need to keep an if statement in mind, you still need to keep the variable in mind anyway.