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I would argue Typescript / Deno doesn't have dependency hell if you don't want it to. Just like we natively code a lot of utility functions in PHP for Composr which are available as libraries in Composer, the same can be done in Typescript. Typescript is also capable of being procedurally coded (function-based). It still does use objects at its core but you can avoid classes where / when you want to (except when defining types; I believe TS is class-based in that regard but I could be wrong).

Currently anything Node / Deno is significantly more difficult to set up on a server for the average user than a dependency-free PHP application like Composr. There are also more points of failure that can bring the entire server down if you don't have proper redundancy / process management. So from our personal demographics, I'm not keen on switching to a Deno / Node solution, at least not right now or anytime soon (let's say in the next 5 years). Granted PHP will die at some point, that's a given. But by then hopefully by then there will be a solution as easy if not easier to use than PHP.

Sure, we could code - or hopefully find - some kind of base library providing a bit more parity with PHP. Think md5, etc.

Regarding setup, I would like us to take the direction of moving away from the legacy hosting industry, as I have had nothing but problems dealing with consumer webhosts: the industry is largely a race to the bottom and stagnated. See #3792, or just the general notion of getting a cloud instance. People would be encouraged to set things up via some kind of easy scripting process, rather than the current install process. We wouldn't expect to run in an environment where the user has a hosting control panel anymore. That's the way the wider industry has gone anyways.

I agree we should stick with PHP while we can. I hope PHP doesn't die, but I am concerned that there are going to be increasingly few developers who know the language. Think Perl.