There is a better way. Check out how Erlang embraces failure with its "let it crash" philosophy, and considers trying to handle every error condition manually

There is a better way. Check out how Erlang embraces failure with its "let it crash" philosophy, and considers trying to handle every error condition manually ("defensive programming") an anti-pattern. Read the "Error handling philosophy" section of Joe Armstrong's thesis[1] if you want to learn more. [1]: http://www.sics.se/~joe/thesis/armstrong_thesis_2003.pdf http://www.sics.se/~joe/thesis/armstrong_thesis_2003.pdf