I'm not addressing idempotency, that's a separate issue. The comparison we're discussing here is about the relative merits of `rm -f` versus the stat/rm (no '-f

I'm not addressing idempotency, that's a separate issue. The comparison we're discussing here is about the relative merits of `rm -f` versus the stat/rm (no '-f' option) approach. The parent post addressed a potential weakness of using the '-f' option--and the proposed alternative brings tradeoffs. I believe your point about idempotency is correct, though.