T.R., totally agree. There is no shortage of effective cartridges for hunting rifles in north America. Everyone has a reason they think their favorite is best. Heck, when I was much younger, I thought the .257 Roberts was the best deer caliber ever invented. It is quite effective with a 100 to 117 grain bullet, kills like lightening. However, so does a bazillion other loads. I've gone the gamut from that .257 to belted magnums and back to sane calibers. Now days, I'm more interested in the delivery system. I traded for my Remington M7 because I wanted a short, light, effective rifle. I wanted it in .308, but to be honest, I'd been as well served with the 7mm08. Now, the .260 is the hot item along with the short magnums, but the .308 with proper bullet will take anything that walks north America. I wouldn't go Kodiak bear hunting with it, maybe polar bear, but it would kill one with proper shot placement. I bet a lot of big bear have been dispatched by the .30-30. 50 years ago, that's about all the Inuits used, I am told by an informed source who was an indian agent in Alaska after WW2 (interesting old fellow to talk to).
I may hunt elk before I'm too old to mess with it, but I doubt it. Mule deer is likely the biggest game I'll ever go after. I don't feel I need that 7mm Rem Mag anymore. My little M7 is 1 moa accurate and will take anything I'll ever chase. It's light to carry, compact in a stand, and I have a lot of confidence in it after taking some head of hog and deer and some coyotes at long range with it, one something shy of 400 yards. It's soft on the shoulder, too, despite it's light weight.
I don't get into the "my caliber is better than yours" stuff anymore. They'll all do the job within their effective ranges right down to the .243 and .30-30 on whitetail and mulies. There is no "best" deer rifle/caliber IMHO. I do prefer my delivery system to anything bigger out there. It's rugged, reliable, accurate, light, and compact. I prefer it to my big, heavy long action Savage 110 in 7 mag. I don't like luggin' around a cannon or trying to maneuver one in a box blind. The .308 is an adequate caliber, inherently accurate, easy to reload, military brass is cheap and available, .30 caliber bullets are in huge variety, I just like it.
I don't see anything going too far after a lung hit from a 150 grain Nosler ballistic tip or a 140 grain Barnes X at 2800 fps/2600 ft lbs about at the muzzle. My .257 spits a 100 grain bullet out at 3150fps/2200 ft lbs and my grandpa took a deer at near 400 yards with it. The .308 puts up more energy with more bullet and I don't shoot too often at 400 yards. The coyote was a fluke, out on an open grassy plain and here I was with a rifle in my hands.
If you like your Whelen or .45-70, that's what matters. It works for you and you have confidence in it. No, they're not "too much" for deer, no more "too much" than any 7 mag, .30-06, or any number of large calibers that are used on deer all the time. If it works for you, why worry about "over-gunning" the game? If it kills 'em dead, that's the objective, isn't it?
BTW, that chartreuse print is KILLER on my old eyes.