If you don't understand when you're working on a mutable version of a data structure vs a copy, you can't get very far. So at least that part of 'understanding pointers' is crucial in any language?
Completely agree. If this weren't true, the fizzbuzz test wouldn't exist.
The 90s were filled with businessmen creating Access databases that wouldn't scale, and Visual Basic's drag-and-drop capabilities created a cottage industry for controls consumed by non-programmers.
That's both good and bad. Bad for the obvious reasons (lots of crap software) but good in that for the most part people were able to build what they needed to solve problems and move on.
Nowhere is "worse is better" more true than line-of-business software.