The proponents of the two sides of this "argument" seem to me to be artists and constructionists. In software, art is what happens at a hacker conference or at a startup BEFORE the investors start poking around. Construction (including architecture and source control and coding standards and design patterns et. al.) is what happens at a medium to large company that takes huge amounts of skilled workers to build something that can then be charged for in copious amounts and which will then make investors rich.
In short, hacking vs. coding. Both have a place in the world. Neither should be influenced by the other. The big problem with software is that the former usually morphs into the later rather than being a completely separate effort which should include none of the original source material and none of the original players.
And finally, a good hacker is NEVER a good coder, and a bad coder is often NOT a gifted hacker, but someone who shouldn't be doing either type of work.
