Well, the alternative is adding a new keyword, and it's difficult to do that without risking breaking any existing code that uses whatever identifier they choos

Well, the alternative is adding a new keyword, and it's difficult to do that without risking breaking any existing code that uses whatever identifier they choose. Breaking old code is even less "Java" than introducing new symbols. edit: Actually, now that I think about it, this wouldn't be the first time they introduced a new keyword with a language update. So much for that argument: http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/java/nutsandbolts/_keywords.html http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/java/nutsandbolts/_k...