He seems to go to great lengths to emphasize the visual clutter in the declaration, but then mentions nothing of the casts that are no longer needed as a result. Anecdotes != proof I know, but I can say that I have caught several typecast mismatches in code I've converted from pre-generic times to using generics.<p>But all that is not what the article is about, really. Say what you will about Java, whether or not it's dead or dying, etc. but I dare say that generics in and of themselves aren't causing the Java ecosystem any substantial damage.