No it doesn't. The analogy was flawed from two sides. Firstly, VB was (is?) a perfectly good solution for producing functional systems which solve problems. It's not very nice, but to say that it doesn't bring you closer to what you wanted is downright false. It does - that's why so many functional applications are written in it.
Secondly, I'd argue that the same statement applied to 3D printers is also false. Just because the output of hobby level plastic extruding printers is limited to certain shapes and materials doesn't mean that the process as a whole is flawed. I've played around with titanium springs, brackets and other interestingly shaped pieces which simply couldn't be produced by any other manufacturing process. 3D printing (in particular selective laser sintering) is going to produce a step change in the aerospace industry.
Finally, as an aside hobby and low cost plastic 3D printers are very useful for some applications. Producing brackets and mounting plates is considerably streamlined with a 3D printer. It's a useful technology for particular applications. Its not the fault of plastic additive manufacturing that journalists are getting more excited than they should be about it.
