Yes, programming is hard.  It's even harder if one is poorly educated and not well read.  I don't expect that everyone will have Smalltalk experience, but I would expect someone nearing completion of a PhD in computer science to have at least _heard_ of Smalltalk and Alan Kay.  I recently met a very bright count-example to my expectation.

The average programmer I meet, has no historical perspective, can't intelligently compare and contrast oo, structured and functional approaches to software implementation.  All they seem to care about is this or that "technology" they saw in a glossy ad.

Do you recall a talk Alan gave some years back at Stanford?  He was on a good rant about how our computer science/engineering departments had let themselves be turned into Java certification mills, and ultimately uttered the words "what has happened to the mighty Standford?"  I was a little surprised at his candor (took guts) and agreed with every word he said.

The problem is PATHETIC education and self-preparation, IMHO.