My intention was poorly portrayed but to try again, in all my years I've never known anyone who has been sued over a non-compete, a good chunk of those people have been software developers and most software developers sign non-competes these days, usually in overly broad topics (and I do know a bunch of people who have continued to work within the same relatively narrow industry).

Non-competes are nearly never enforced but their presence has a chilling effect, those of us aware of their unenforceablity and lack of attempts at enforcement generally waive off the consequences of signing them. People who are less familiar take them more seriously and they can have a real chilling effect, so their mere existence creates an imbalance in seeking future work.