I think the reason we disagree is because we have different definitions of the term "good foundation." I will also say that compared to grasping the overall pic

I think the reason we disagree is because we have different definitions of the term "good foundation." I will also say that compared to grasping the overall picture, dealing with "gotchas" in various languages (while annoying!) are pretty easy in practice... You encounter something unexpected, reason why it's unexpected (convincing yourself of it takes time inversely proportional to your grounding), look it up, and move on.