@sydneyfalk it's an easy trap to fall onto, indeed, but he blocked himself into not reading _why_ using strict mode.
Being an expert on a language doesn't mean you know by memory each and every function, but knowing how and when to use the tools provided by your language.
He was just a bad professional, ignoring the knowledge of others because it wasn't what he's used of writing.
Sorry if my comments don't make a lot of sense, I'm a bit drunk.