When Java came out it was a big step forward for a lot of people. Most of the scripting languages with OO features (Ruby, Python, PHP) have a lot of Java influence.
I see the problem is that Java stopped evolving a decade ago. C# shows the kind of path that a Java-like language can follow to get better, and Java just hasn't been moving.
Scratch Ruby and Python from your list and I'll agree with you on the OO influence! Not to mention Python is older than Java. I think most of the 'scripting languages' with OO have decidedly not gone the Java/C++ way.
Other than that I'm pretty much in agreement. Even not so long ago as 2002 people would say "Let's use Java" when they really were saying "Let's NOT use C++." C# is a great language, though MS didn't put their heart into really killing Java. I think Microsoft could have dominated with C# outside of Windows World (lots of enterprises still rely on Linux, and Java's not a bad choice for an enterprise app on a Linux server, then there's Android..) if they put more backing behind Mono or just open sourced everything to begin with.
When Java came out it was a big step forward for a lot of people. Most of the scripting languages with OO features (Ruby, Python, PHP) have a lot of Java influence.
I see the problem is that Java stopped evolving a decade ago. C# shows the kind of path that a Java-like language can follow to get better, and Java just hasn't been moving.