I like the trend too, particularly in the sense that everyone should learn about programming in the same way that everyone should learn math and how to read/wri

I like the trend too, particularly in the sense that everyone should learn about programming in the same way that everyone should learn math and how to read/write. Not everyone goes on to become an author and I won't expect everyone to go on to be professional programmers. I think the push back against this trend is due to the uncertainty surrounding how a movement like this will change the industry. Like you said it will empower people and I think one of the ways this can change things, in a good way, is by allowing services to be centered more around APIs so that everyone can build and customize tools the exact way they like. Take for example todo list software, there will always be many offerings because everyone has a certain way they like to go about it. If you can program then you can customize the experience for your particular case while the data (the key resource being shared in the case of teams) remains the same. It's also very similar to putting together your own macros in many programs... just taken a bit further.