I think one of the main reasons why he did what he did is his motivation, or lack of it while working with C++. Whatever rational arguments would point out to C++ will be essentially meaningless if he is not happy writing with it. That's why discipline is so important in any work. Motivation can get you just so far. It is highly volatile and unreliable. I think it's safe to assume that the author soon will get tired of C and move to languages like python and write an article of how optimizations aren't that important compared to productivity and how critical parts can be written in C, etc. Great article for his perspective and some pros/cons of C/C++, but take it with a grain of salt.