Static typing isn't really the issue. C and Java are constrained and fussy and demand a level of forethought and attention to detail that is absent from something like Perl or Python. This is mostly because they're compiled, although static typing also plays a role. The point is they're unforgiving, and teach you a level of discipline and rigour that you otherwise may not need to learn.

Personally, I hate working in C or Java, and avoid them precisely because prototyping all my functions annoys me and I don't care whether my objects are public or private. I'm still glad I learned them when I did, in a training environment where I was obliged to do so. If I hadn't, and I'd started on Python, I would have had absolutely no motive to learn them unless someone made me.