On the Meaning of Haskell

While reading what Cynbe had to say at http://mythryl.org/ concerning the design of his language I came across the following: Simon Peyton-Jones refers to programming under this strict constraint as "wearing the hair shirt". What Simon wrote caused me to reflect on its meaning for a time. I feel that what Simon is saying is that if you value the truth, you will be willing to suffer for it. Apparently, Cynbe is not willing to suffer. As such the Pagan motif is appropriate.