You mean Python 2 or Python 3? If you are a beginner and just starting - Python 3, without a doubt.
(Well, even if you aren't a beginner you should use (or switch to) Python 3)
That "Which Python?" is an important question and that the existence of two versions of Python can make finding correct information harder is one of the reasons I am not wild about recommending Python to beginners -- particularly those who are going to be learning on their own.
I think your making an overly big deal about this. Never really had an issue with this doing simple python stuff.
The functional trio: map, filter, reduce is one place where it matters. In Python2 that was simple Python stuff. In Python3 map, filter, reduce is unPythonic.