modern js is still js. the fact that linters are _required_ to keep code sane is proof enough. typescript is a different language, i'd wager it doesn't count, even though i agree it's a considerable improvement.
au contraire, many developers know exactly what programming in js looks like, especially compared to other languages. i used to think that c++ and boost compilation was crazy. now i look at glorified web pages with 200MB+ of dependencies and wonder how we got there.
i agree that js was a perfect choice for node.js, because it was the only choice for node.js - to use the same language that runs in the client. that doesn't make it a good - or even sane - choice in the greater perspective. python was and still is a good choice - twisted was used to create async services before ajax was a word. you can also take a guess from where the promise/deferred pattern took at least some of its inspiration.