This is not the place to discuss the design of some other language, but from the POV of my experience with multiple ALGOL-based languages-
You yourself chose "with regret" to join this thread with a comment that continued off-topic:
With regret, I join this thread to say I agree. You only have to look at the popular distinction between "curly bracket languages" and "Everything else".
MarkMLl
So why can languages such as C, C++, Algol, Python etc be discussed but not a compiler I'm working on that can benefit from these discussions? I haven't heard the OP or any moderator complaining about the thread so far, on the contrary, and in my experience they're quite lenient about going off-topic.
and modern BASIC aspires to that heritage- that syntax... is severely deficient.
Programmers tend to be misguided by the reputation that comes with the name BASIC. The SharpBASIC syntax is most definitely NOT deficient (some proposed the language should have another name).
I'm also concerned about the consequences if either a Pascal newbie or somebody intent to criticise the language were to read this stuff.
Your concern is duly noted.
If you want to discuss a specific language feature as you have in your recent posts undisturbed, then please start your own thread.