Python as an Object Oriented Programming Language

[Manuel M. Garcia]

I think the whole Python-newsgroup vs. LISP-newsgroup thing all
started when a Pythonista went into the LISP newsgroup and asked for
opinions about why Python seemed to be overtaking LISP.  Obviously,
the LISPers took it very hard and crucified him (and rightly so, kinda
a dumb place to make a comment like that).

Now we have LISPers in CLP doing four things (1) bad-mouthing Python
(2) talking up LISP (3) trying to convince us to turn Python into LISP
(4) claiming Python *already* is just a pale imitation of LISP

Just last week was a whole discussion about how Python needs LISP's
macro capability.  I was tempted to join the discussion, but realized
it would be a cold day in hell before Guido added macros to Python, so
no need to even dignify the discussion with a post.

I think we would already have Stackless built into CPython if
Christian Tismer had not also tried to get LISP's continuations added
to Python too.  Frankly I consider continuations to be a control
mechanism even more unstructured than GOTO, and a heck of a lot more
confusing. I have Dybvig's Scheme manual, and the section on
continuations degenerates into examples that are progressively (1)
less motivated (2) more tortured (3) more confusing.

LISP's community is not so hot either.  I remember Slashdot's
interview with Kent M. Pitman where he said:

"""
In my recent professional life, I have personally written several XML
parsers, all in Lisp, for various employers and most recently for
myself and my fledgling company. My company's implementation is not
available on the market yet...
"""

In the Python community, if anyone worked on anything like this, they
would release it for everyone to freely use right from day one.  Which
is why Pythonistas don't write the same program over and over
independent of other Pythonistas.  Which is why Python is described as
coming "with batteries" and its built-in library has much more
functionality than CL or Scheme's even Python is a younger language.

And the LISP community cannot stop writing competing C
implementations.  As soon as anyone becomes proficient at LISP, they
write their own interpreter or compiler that has 2% better performance
on some corner condition in the language.

Uh, this turned into a bit of a rant...  ;-)

Manuel