The author is from New Zealand. You have to understand the Number 8 wire[1] mindset the has taken root there to put this in context.
[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_8_wire#:~:text=Accordin...
[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_8_wire#:~:text=Accordin...
And therefore, adopting a "zero dependencies" policy is absolutely an overreaction.
Where the article hits is critical libraries that you heavily rely on and that your code is slowly formatted around. I'm thinking specific data parsers, fancy query brokers, time management libraries etc.