Put differently, you want to prevent transformation of references, but using a completely ineffective tool to achieve it. Making references read-only doesn't prevent transformation.

Preventing transformation (stringification, numification, but not booleanification) of references might be a good idea.

Issues:

• Intentional uses of $ref+0 would have to be replaced by refaddr($ref).
• Intentional uses of "$ref" would have to be replaced.
• Programs that mostly function will start dying instead.

Benefits:

• Catch some bad code (But what code wouldn't already be obviously wrong?)

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