Perl is write-only code. Larry Wall raised a monkey's paw and asked for a language that works the way programmers want. So most scripts are the first thing someone tried - unfiltered by rigid syntax putting your thoughts in order, or compiler warnings bringing side effects to mind, or even names forcing you to decide what a variable is. An uncommented Perl script is raw brain patterns decoded as ASCII.
Thank god it runs like shit. Fast C isn't exactly gorgeous, but any project that compiles is proof the coder fought the machine and won.