I always hate these tests because what is being compared is always lost. Are you trying to compare the best possible performance in these languages or the speed

I always hate these tests because what is being compared is always lost. Are you trying to compare the best possible performance in these languages or the speed of the average program? The problem with that invariably ends up being the amount of work/knowledge gets put into the implementation. For example, gettimeofday is a terrible function to use for measuring performance. Furthermore, people for some reason get religious about languages. Every language has its benefits and costs. Use whatever language is appropriate to your situation.