Can pattern variables be globally bound?

[Roger Price]

On Tue, 28 Mar 2006, Thomas Johnsson wrote:

> This is a messy corner in Erlang... Although same variables in patterns 
> in function heads and case expressions means equality, 'equality-ness' 
> does not propagate into fun()'s and list comprehensions, instead they 
> denote new variables with the same name:
> 
> f(X,Y) ->                    %3
>    F = fun(X) -> {X,X} end, %4
>    F(Y).                    %5
> ...

This is disconcerting.  I had assumed that a case expression such as
   case Expr
   of (P1) -> E1
    ; (P2) -> E2
   end
could be defined as
   fun (P1) -> E1
     ; (P2) -> E2
   end (Expr)
but now it appears this is not true, since the fun introduces new 
variables in the patterns P1 and P2, which the case expression does not.

Roger