Declarations vs. statements (was Re: Dumb python questions)

[Aahz Maruch]

In article <mailman.997933587.4901.python-list at python.org>,
Tim Peters <tim.one at home.com> wrote:
>Paul Rubin:
>>
>> Here's something I don't understand: why is it that the default
>> value of a function arg is evaluated just once, instead of whenever
>> the function is called?
>
>Simply because that seemed most useful most often, and is most consistent
>with the rest of the language:  default arguments are a kind of binding
>performed at function definition time, and there are no instances of
>"delayed assignment" anywhere in the language.  Note that "def" is an
>executable statement in Python, not a declaration ("class" is also
>executable, btw -- the only declaration in Python is the "global" stmt).

Hmmm?  I would argue that "yield" (new in Python 2.2) is both an
executable statement and a declaration.  In fact, that's precisely why 
I argued against making yield alone the keyword for identifying a
generator.
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