Writing big applications in Java/C++ takes too long. And then managements decide to avoid 'custom code' in favor of 'standard' vendor tools where you can drag and drop to build parts of the 'big' application. This applies to ETL, reporting, messaging to name a few. With Python, the development cycle shortens and you can still stick to writing code instead of dealing with vendor binaries, lock-ins, licensing etc. Python with strong emphasis on unit tests, coupled with plugging in C/C++ where necessary for performance can result in a better overall system.

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/0... (nytimes, may be pay-walled) All the people in this region are playing with fire. While they’re fighting over who is caliph, who is the rightful heir to the Prophet Muhammad from the seventh century — Sunnis or Shiites — and to whom God really gave the holy land, Mother Nature is not sitting idle. She doesn’t do politics — only physics, biology and chemistry. And if they add up the wrong way, she will take them all down. The only “ism” that will save them is not Shiism or Islamism but “environmentalism” — understanding that there is no Shiite air or Sunni water, there is just “the commons,” their shared ecosystems, and unless they cooperate to manage and preserve them (and we all address climate change), vast eco-devastation awaits them all.

A lot of the responses have been disengenous. The author included C++ in the article to indicate there is a need for other languages in different scenarios. You don't write device drivers in Python, I'm sure. Also, the only people complaining about the whitespace are the ones who are comfortable with other languages and haven't tried Python sincerely. If you are trying to publish an article, are you going to ignore indentation? New people entering programming with Python don't have an issue. The indentation is natural to them.