You are right - in fact I tend to think so myself, and would have written as much, except for the embedded subroutine trap which does not necessarily mean the starting code was sloppy...

BUt apart from that (which is avoided by using packages, arguably a way of achieving better code structure), I have from some time decided to write modperl-compliant CGI code even when I know it will never run under modperl....
call it the superstrict pragma, if you wish ;)
Cheers,
alf