in my experience POSIX shell itself is very finicky, and I don’t think anything can be done to make it better. We’re stuck here. Unless, you know 
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I think it’s like with old people* – old software becomes finicky over time, because when you’re young you don’t notice flaws, but as you grow older, you became self aware of those more and more, and while some can be fixed, others are so deep in the roots of your personality, that nothing can be done to them, and you naturally became finicky to avoid touching those flaws. 
* not all old people are like that, there are a lot of great old people who’re extremely thoughtful and not finicky, but I guess we all know what I’ve meant there