this post was submitted on 19 Aug 2026
388 points (98.7% liked)

Technology

87312 readers
4411 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.


Our Rules


  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related news or articles.
  3. Be excellent to each other!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, this includes using AI responses and summaries. To ask if your bot can be added please contact a mod.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
  10. Accounts 7 days and younger will have their posts automatically removed.

Approved Bots


founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] grue@lemmy.world 90 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago) (2 children)

We've been told historical lies. People who have an issue with this are like Luddites, but that's because the Luddites were justified too!

They weren't against technology; they were against it being used to abuse and exploit them as workers.

[–] halezinflames@lemmus.org 14 points 12 hours ago (2 children)

I've only heard that term being used to insult, that's actually a real thing?

[–] grue@lemmy.world 56 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luddites

The Luddites were members of a 19th-century movement of English textile workers who protested the usage of certain types of automated machinery owing to their concerns relating to worker pay, labour savings, child labour, working conditions, and output quality. They often destroyed said machines in organised raids. Members of the group referred to themselves as Luddites, self-described followers of "Ned Ludd", a legendary weaver whose name was used as a pseudonym in threatening letters to mill owners and government officials.

[–] Dojan@pawb.social 8 points 2 hours ago* (last edited 2 hours ago)

History is written by the victors, and the luddites lost. That's why they're maligned as backwards idiots who didn't want tech to succeed.

They weren't stupid. They knew precisely what was going to happen, and did their best to stop it. Generally they took care to target only machines as their goal wasn't to harm people but to remain employed, and have money to survive with. Naturally there were exceptions, and sometimes people did get hurt.

But then, the bourgeoisie enacted law to prevent this where destroying mechanical looms became punishable by... oh let's see...

The act, as passed, made the destruction of mechanised looms [...] a capital felony (and hence a crime punishable by death).

Right! Death! Destruction of company property became punishable by death.

And people did die. Children died. Mind you, back then workers were anyone capable of working, and they had no rights. They didn't vote for the people who passed this act; workers weren't supposed to have a voice, and so the only recourse was rebellion.

This didn't stop things immediately, there's quite a lot of really cool worker history here, but eventually the government sent in the military and couple that with nothing really changing despite widespread rebellion, the luddite movement fizzled out.

[–] k0e3@lemmy.ca -2 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

I've never heard it used as an insult. How is it even supposed to be offensive? "Har har you're a person who doesn't like tech"?

[–] plateee@piefed.social 17 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

Less of "you're a person who doesn't like tech" and more "you're not with the times/are scared of the future"... which is pretty close to some messaging from clankers.

[–] k0e3@lemmy.ca 4 points 8 hours ago

I see, thank you!

[–] paraphrand@lemmy.world 3 points 11 hours ago

Gotta warp the truth to misdirect from the real problems.