I find the headline and the article in the OP to be a bit misleading. This is not about the general public, or the relationship of individuals to mathematics. It's not a "hey, you should do more maths!" type of motivational speech.

The whole speech is addressed to the leaders of the math community, i. e. the teachers. It's a well-crafted plea for introspection, to find the humanity that was somehow lost along the way.