Wow. Jeff's article was not nearly as silly or inflammatory as some of these responses. Zed's rants can be great fun and quite theatrical, but Jeff was not trying to stifle anyone and prevent from learning to program. He was critiquing the fact that coding is becoming an "end unto itself" rather than one means (among many) for solving problems. Just because one learns to code does not mean one will solve problems - they may create more. Conversely, someone can never learn to code and be amazingly effective solving problems through other means. I am a programmer and really enjoy programming and appreciate its effect on the modern world - but it is not an end unto itself.