> This is not true for garbage collected languages

JavaScript is backwards compatible going back effectively forever, as is Java. Rust's unique system is having a way to make breaking changes to the language without breaking old code, not that they prioritize supporting old code indefinitely.

The libraries are a different story—you're likely to have things break under you that rely on older versions of libraries when you update—but I don't see Rust actually having solved that.

> You can audit and most importantly modify the code. This is not that easy if you were using Nodejs where the runtimes are behind node/v8 or whatever.

Node and V8 are open source, which makes the code just as auditable and modifiable as the 3.6 million lines of Rust. Which is to say, both are equally unapproachable.