I'm not sure why you're getting downmodded; Java is a fine language to learn, if anything there are a lot of interesting languages up-and-coming on the JVM, and

I'm not sure why you're getting downmodded; Java is a fine language to learn, if anything there are a lot of interesting languages up-and-coming on the JVM, and it would be helpful to have an understanding of the Java language to fully appreciate them. Some languages that are JVM specific today include Groovy, Scala and Clojure. I'm sure there are more. Beyond that, there is Jython and JRuby. In addition, Java is a widely marketable skill. It's nice to be able to find work while you're a young programmer, even if it's boring stuff. People aren't always so fortunate as to be able to start a startup when they're young; sometimes they actually have to get a job doing crap work while they learn.