Why is this so important to you that it's one of your "saddest things"? People should be free to work on what they want to work on. Maybe these brilliant people you want to subjugate have no interest in whatever it is you deem important.
The GP even says "How much positive impact could those people be having if they were just pointed in another direction?" This isn't being critical of their interests, this is saying they shouldn't be able to choose what they work on.
Nowhere does the article say or imply this.
Yes, the author thinks these are not useful generally and that it's a waste to create them. No, that still doesn't mean or imply they want to ban their creation.
The GP even says "How much positive impact could those people be having if they were just pointed in another direction?" This isn't being critical of their interests, this is saying they shouldn't be able to choose what they work on.
No, it isn't. In no way, shape or form does the verb "point" imply coercion. "Point" means "direct someone's attention".