Python’s Original Sin
I once said that Python is Dead because of the Language Moratorium but Jesse Noller convinced me an embargo on syntax innovation is the practical thing for the language. Reading about Perl 6 reminds me why this is a symptom of a more fundamental issue.
In Perl 6, the standard grammar is in a form executable by Perl 6. Like LISP, the language uses itself for parsing and compilation. Also like LISP, Perl 6 provides the user with the power of compile-time macros, empowering the addition of features like the with statement without any changes to language interpreters. This is important, because when such changes become standardized in Perl 6.1, secondary implementations can understand them without necessitating changes to the actual interpreter, just like changes to Python’s standard libraries can.
By contrast, Jython lags behind CPython syntax by over 3 years, precisely because all interpreters need to add the new syntax and semantic changes manually, and band-aids like the moratorium become necessary solutions, alleviating the symptoms of a more fundamental design flaw: syntax and semantics which require human implementation instead being portable from one implementation to another.
