The Spider-Men are fighting over increment operators when suddenly... the enlightened one appears. While these rookies are arguing about x++ , x = x+1 , and x += 1 (which all do the same thing), the true galaxy-brain move is x -= -1 . It's like showing up to a knife fight with quantum physics. Sure, it works exactly the same, but it's the coding equivalent of wearing a monocle while eating fast food. Completely unnecessary, wildly pretentious, and somehow... magnificent. Your code reviewer will either fire you or promote you on the spot.