Python strings are immutable, but only sometimes
My favorite Python WTF "feature" is that integers can have have the same reference, but only sometimes:<p><pre><code>  >>> a = 256
  >>> b = 256
  >>> a is b
  True
  >>> a = 257
  >>> b = 257
  >>> a is b
  False
  >>> a = 257; b = 257
  >>> a is b
  True
</code></pre>
Sometimes I think of Python as the <i>Nash Equilibrium</i>[a] of programming languages:<p>It's never the absolute best language for anything, but it's hard to improve it on any front (e.g., execution speed) without hindering it on other fronts (e.g., ad-hoc interactivity), and it's never the absolute worst language for anything. Often enough, it's good enough.<p>Python might well be "the least-worst language for everything."<p>--<p>[a] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nash_equilibrium" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nash_equilibrium</a>