[comp.lang.c++] why static members can't have initializers or constructurs

ark@alice.UUCP (05/06/87)

Good usage dictates that an external object should be initialized
in exactly one place, and that all declarations for a particular
class should be identical -- in fact, should be included from the
same header file.

If a class definition in a header file has an initialized
static member, there is no way to escape multiple initialization.
Worse, there is no easy way for the compiler to generate
C that will make it through the typical linker.