I don’t understand the premise: null references (of whatever flavor) can simultaneously be trivial to detect at runtime and have been a poor design decision. Th

I don’t understand the premise: null references (of whatever flavor) can simultaneously be trivial to detect at runtime and have been a poor design decision. The two aren’t mutually exclusive. I think Hoare’s own quote has exactly that nuance in it: reliability and predictability are given as much prominence as security.