That's not what it means. No one disputes you should keep passwords, private keys, certificates, etc. safe.
It's about obscuring the architecture of a system in order to protect it. And I agree this shouldn't be a tactic. It can be a byproduct of your disclosure strategy (i.e. AWS don't disclose how their products are built) but not a security mechanism (i.e. AWS don't meet all the certification standards BECAUSE they're not disclosing how their products are built). Just my 2 cents.
I read your entire rant and it's based on the sole idea that the EU is a cult, not a single quantifiable fact. This is the kind of judgement that leads to bad decisions. I think it's best we make this kind of decisions based on numbers rather than abstract thinking.
For the record, I want to understand why people voted "leave" but every time I try I end up reading something like this which doesn't get me closer, it just upsets me.
They did but you had to buy them yourself and most of the times you didn't have a use for them after. With snowball they manage the process end to end.
Don't focus on theory, focus on what you want to build. Find a project that you really want to build and learn whatever is needed to get it built. Try to pick something non-trivial (a to do list is ok, but it will only get you so far).
JavaScript is broad, you can use it on the client and on the server. You will probably need to learn a front-end framework (just pick one, don't bother too much on picking the right one) - AngularJS, React are both very good choices. With this and some HTML/CSS knowledge you can build a pretty cool static app.
Meteor[1] gives you some server-side capabilities. The JAWS[2] framework does the same but in an AWS environment. I'm also working on a project called Sync Ninja[3] that will be like those two but un-opinionated (though it's not ready yet). You can of course use pure Node.js on the server if you want.
In reality, you won't be able to focus on both. I know people say you can do it, and Elon Musk is a great example of a successful entrepreneur with two awesome companies, but one startup is hard enough on you and the people around you.
My take on this is that you're delaying a decision on what startup to focus on and relying on YC to make that decision for you. In reality, you should work on the startup that you WANT to work on, the one that solves a problem you care for.
This will also increase your chances to get into YC. Being committed is pretty much a requirement to get into YC (or have a successful company for that matter).
My advice is to choose between one of your projects, commit and do everything you can to make it awesome.
Would you prefer to manage the servers underneath yourself? The idea was to make it easier to deploy for people to don't necessary know the server-side, so that's why it's in the shape of a managed service. Open to suggestions :)