[Mr. Bird]

Looks like we're going to be a nation of salesmen and lawyers

No, it doesn't look like that at all. But some people seem to think that if we were just a nation of programmers and developers, that would be just peachie.

If programming becomes as easy as ditch digging, would we be smart to hold on to those jobs? We're already seeing IT products that laymen can use to do a job that just a few years ago required a few techies to handle.

It certainly is an emotional issue, and I understand the turmoil IT people are going through. But I don't think anyone should dismiss the very real possibility that such happenings are good for everyone in the long run.

[blowfish]

It certainly is an emotional issue, and I understand the turmoil IT people are going through. But I don't think anyone should dismiss the very real possibility that such happenings are good for everyone in the long run.
Except that as you contine to dismantle our technological base, you degrade our ability to spawn 'the next big thing'. The explosion of internet-related technology didn't spring out of nowhere. It sprang out of the minds and labor of countless technically skilled people who were part of a thriving computer industry. As you ship more and more IT jobs out of the country, you decrease the likelyhood that you'll have an enthusiastic, technically creative workforce that will *allow* such industries to arise in the US.
But hey, maybe The Next Big Thing will be a new way of flipping burgers or greeting Walmart customers. Then we'll be in perfect position to seize the opportunity!

[Glenn]

But I don't think anyone should dismiss the very real possibility that such happenings are good for everyone in the long run.

I keep reading this line but have yet to hear just how it is going to be good for us. Can you explain it to me? Can you give me a timeline? Show me a plan?