VPS != shared hosting. With a VPS, you get to decide what packages are installed (and what OS is installed, for that matter.) With shared hosting, you get a Unix account without administrator access, and have to put up with whatever packages you're given.
The point being that unless you're specifically in the latter situation, you get to decide what language platform to install and how to configure it, so why bother making your choice of language based on that?
See response to sibling, shared resources isn't the same thing as "shared hosting". Pedantic I know, but an important distinction within the industry.
Also important to my point because on a DO server you can install python or ruby, it's only on shared or managed servers where picking PHP because it's ubiquitous is valid idea. Shared hosting is often limited to PHP, SaaS and VPS providers are not.
The point being that unless you're specifically in the latter situation, you get to decide what language platform to install and how to configure it, so why bother making your choice of language based on that?