Maybe the issue is how he thinks about mathematics... He quotes Von Neuman saying:
> We should remember the warning of John von Neuman,e one of the greatest mathematicians and computer scientists of the 20th century, regarding the danger of mathematics driven solely by internal esthetics: “There is a grave danger that the subject will develop along the line of least resistance.”
But for example, there is an article in Quanta [0] about a recent proof in Number Theory (you cannot get more "mathematical" than that), and the guy who proved it said:
> “Mathematics is not just about proving theorems — it’s about a way to interact with reality, maybe.”
Which is in line with Von Neuman's quote, and with the spirit of what the author is saying.
So maybe a more accurate subtitle would be:
"Thinking of theoretical computer science as a mathematical formal system is harmful to the discipline."
[0] https://www.quantamagazine.org/big-advance-on-simple-soundin...