> This is an old problem that has been discussed on the mailing list.

Yes, it is old, and it is not restricted to sh or root. I'm puzzled there
is no PR about it too, and more so that I didn't file one either ;-)

I often see this when opening a new xterm (with tcsh as my shell). Shutting
down the X server and starting it again fixes it. Once it happens to
one xterm, it usually happens to all new opened ones.

Martin