I'm one of the people who says JavaScript is the worst thing to happen to the web, and I don't need an alternative to say that, because my issue is with what JavaScript does, not how it does it. An alternative that does the same thing wouldn't solve my complaint.
I don't want a web where all my software and data is owned by other people who don't have my best interests in mind. JavaScript allows "free" websites to replace programs running on my machine which is fundamentally opposed to my goals. I don't want all the power that computers have brought to humanity to be concentrated in the hands of corporations, I want it to be free for anyone to use. I'm glad JavaScript is shitty and I wish it were shittier, because that would slow the growth of corporate control over our capabilities and data.
The most pervasive and harmful companies all use JavaScript and couldn't do the harm they do without it (or, I suppose, an equivalent technology).
I would venture that I could solve all the problems you would solve with open source JavaScript with another programming language, because almost no program actually needs to be a web application.
I don't want a web where all my software and data is owned by other people who don't have my best interests in mind. JavaScript allows "free" websites to replace programs running on my machine which is fundamentally opposed to my goals. I don't want all the power that computers have brought to humanity to be concentrated in the hands of corporations, I want it to be free for anyone to use. I'm glad JavaScript is shitty and I wish it were shittier, because that would slow the growth of corporate control over our capabilities and data.