But the problem with general purpose computing is that it's probably one of the most powerful, equalizing things humanity has ever created. This is probably the first time in history the power to create, acquire knowledge, and become self sustainable has been so cheaply and readily available to the average person. It gives a lot of power to them where historically this hasn't been the case. This is less than ideal for those in power and I think it's just taken a while for them to really catch on to what the average person with a general purpose computer can actually accomplish. It makes me worry that this has just been a brief historical anomaly. But, it could still go either way at this point.