Thanks to Gustavo for his answer.
When I first saw the question, I thought that I would need a lot of time to compose an answer, but his response is pretty much to the point.
A couple of additions:
For me, at least, programming in Mathematica mirrors how I think, so even though the syntax is different from other languages like c, the learning curve is not as steep as you might think.
In addition, Mathematica supports natural language input, which can be thought of as training wheels for mastery. Mathematica will show you the proper syntax for what you type (within reason). So, you can type "plot sin of x", and Mathematica will show you a plot (with typical limits), and provide the Mathematica syntax "Plot[Sin[x], {x, 0, 6}]" that you can use next time.
I have been using Mathematica since version 1.1, and writing code in other languages for a very long time. The only real 'con' to the language is that it is difficult to write stand alone (e.g., "shrink-wrapped") apps with it.