That sounds weird, given that Java and Python are almost antitheses of each other. So ActionScript somehow manages to meet two entirely different philosophies in the middle?
I havent used Python and Java a lot, but Python seems like a more laid back Java. Add static types, get rid of functions, and one class per file, and you almost have Java.
In ActionScript everything is an Java-like object. Adobe decided to implement the unfinished ES5 draft where you have JavaScript with "classes," they also put the Java-like limitations of one class per file/package, and having classes do almost everything (instead of functions). If a Java gal went to AS she'd, optionally, want to incorporate closures as a tool.
You can approach Python lot like you would JavaScript -- some functions, some classes, passing around functions/classes as arguments, closures, etc. (I bet that I could replace my JS with Python pretty easily if browsers supported it). If a Python guy goes to AS all he'd really have to do is add types, put every class in its own file, and drop functions (in a few cases).
I wouldnt necessarily say that it meshes the two together, but I do feel that anyone who is comfortable with either Java or Python could be very productive with Actionscript in a short time because of how tightly loose it is, lol.
