Why are typedef names in the same name space as variable names?

[Doug Gwyn]

In article <6430 at alice.uUCp> bs at alice.UUCP writes:
>file1:
>	typedef int I;
>	I i = 1;
>file2:
>	typedef char* I;
>	I p = "asdf";
>Is it legal? Personally, I think not because the name I which is external by
>default has two definitions (but the C++ compiler also accepts it).

I see no more reason to consider the abbreviation `I' external than
to do so for `COUNTER' in the following scenario:
file1:
	#define COUNTER int
	COUNTER i = 1;
file2:
	#define COUNTER long
	COUNTER l = 0;
It appears to depend on whether one considers typedef to be a convenient
shorthand or something more fundamental.  If you adopt your view, then
one needs to allow declarations such as:
	static typedef int I;