Maybe this will finally spur the abolishment of software patents.

I think technology is causing short/medium term unemployment. The problem is that the size of "displacements" is large and it's impacting skillsets people once thought were immune from automation. Manufacturing output in the U.S. is back to pre-recession levels, but manufacturing employment hasn't recovered at all. Companies are now second-level automating -- replacing the data entry jobs (and the "power-users") that once drove business processes with more yet more automation. But in the long run, people and economies will certainly adjust and new opportunities emerge. Not to mention that technology is also creating tons of new jobs, either directly in IT or by helping "old" industries find their way back to countries like the U.S.

My favorite part: "You will accrue recreation leave at the equivalent of 20 days for each full year worked. Please note that recreation leave is not available in Antarctica."

I thought the main benefit of "elasticity" was remove "peak usage" as a primary buying factor. If you have a routine that can run, well whenever, then is EC2 any cheaper than using whatever is sitting around unused in your shop already? The cloud may be a useful resource, but the size & speed of the cloudrush has been overestimated by the entire freakin' industry. By the time it gets sorted and a mature market develops, Microsoft, Amazon, and whomever else will be taking write-downs on all the obsolete kit they built-up in 2008-2009.

If they're right, what's the point in further funding?

It's like finding 'hypocrisy' in the dictionary: http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/globalcitizenship/environment/index.html