No, it doesn't have anything to do with it, nor does the fact that you're parsing CGI parameters on your own. But what peeved me is how you dismissed Dominus' arguments off hand and then you followed up with a bunch of typical ignorant mistakes, when it was obvious you didn't even understand what local does. local seems to work where my should be used because it does what seems to have the same effect, even though it's completely different from what you want.

Sorry for flying off the handle that badly, but you appeared quite unwilling to learn, and it seems you're not after all. Maybe you just "learned" Perl from reading other people's scripts? That frequently teaches awful habits because a lot of the freely available Perl code out there is really awful. If you want to continue that approach, I suggest you check out the NMS archive. Those scripts where expressly written to be an example of good code. merlyn's many various columns also contain well written (if sometimes a bit condensed) code.

I really suggest you get a good book, though. The O'Reilly Llama book is a manageable size and a decent intro, although you'll probably want to skip the chapter or two at this point. The rest of their Perl books are also good; the Camel book is the "standard" reference on Perl, but has grown to a pretty hefty size in its 3rd edition. The Book Reviews section here on this site may also be helpful.

Makeshifts last the longest.