The luddites were nineteenth-century textile workers who went out at night to demolish the machines that threatened to make them unemployed. Since then, 'luddit' has been an epithet for someone who is anti-technology and anti-progress. They set their demolition hammers on that technology that made them unemployed or reduced their wages. They attacked the machines but fought unemployment and poverty, the consequences of industrialisation — the system that produced these technologies.
Will new Luddites stand up against Robotisation, Big Tech like Facebook, Google and Amazon and Apple?

The name comes from the (alleged) inspirer of the Luddites, the mythical Ned Ludd, a British weaver who, according to tradition, began to demolish devices in the late eighteenth century.
A Need to Ned Ludd

The Fourth Industrial Revolution
What Industry 4.0 promises is that the real-time data structure will be integrated into the supply and manufacturing chain. The future picture outlined here is about smart factories. There the machines and products will communicate with each other, and arrange production together. The raw materials and machines are interconnected, a picture that outlines endless possibilities. Data, Data, Data.

Now there's something interesting going on with those Luddites. Because in addition to a swear word, it's also a geuzen name, which some of today's more interesting technology critics like to wear. The new Luddites criticize Big Tech, surveillance technology, addictive apps and devices, but also these Luddites are not fighting the technology in themselves, but the politics-economic system behind it. Their point: a lot of technology does not benefit society or the individual — on the contrary — and is especially instrumental to owners and shareholders. They advocate alternative forms of ownership and control, for technology built to serve society.

Americans are serving in Dutch data centers. Americans are at risk of privacy and trade secrets. The US grip on Dutch data centers is growing due to a number of recent acquisitions. This allows the U.S. government to access data from citizens and businesses by the U.S. Cloud Act can force US companies to access. The Dutch government should fight against this, experts in the Financieele Dagblad say.

Is the time right for a new luddism? 

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