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Someone needs to define what cloud computing is first of all.

There stuff like Amazon's EC2 which gives you a lot of flexibility all the down to the OS you want to install on your "piece of cloud equipment"

Then there's stuff like force.com which even has its own language.

I think the former is ok, but the latter is not.

Additionally, whether it's a good idea or not is dependent on what you intend to do with it. Should you offload your entire enterprise app onto one of these cloud computing solutions just because it's available? Hell no. But for a lot of smaller projects where it doesn't make fiscal sense (or you don't have the cash in the first place) to set up and maintain the hardware infrastructure, it makes a lot of sense. If you look at these offerings as some sort of silver bullet for all applications, you've got the wrong perspective. And as smart as Stallman may be, a blanket dismissal of a technology based on the marketing hype around it is rather stupid. Just think back to the origins of Ajax. It was hyped beyond comprehension, but that didn't mean that it didn't actually have its merits in certain situations (again, not all situations).

It's a trap but most people don't care. Windows is a trap. MacOS X is a trap. iTunes is a trap. That doesn't stop people from using Windows, MacOS X and iTunes.

Many organizations are discovering that they don't have the ability to host competitive services in house, so they're turning to outside vendors.

As for AJAX, AJAX was practically a secret for the first few years of it's existence. I remember proofing a Wrox book circa 2001 and reading about this crazy "IE-only" gimmick that I was sure I'd forget. It wasn't until people started getting results that the hype started, unlike, say, SOAP.

everything is a trap to the eyes of some (unfortunally) influential - and utterly delusional - paranoids (one of them being mr Stallman)
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I have the utmost respect for Stallman, but this seems like a case of an old dog unable to learn new tricks. Cloud computing isn't a be-all end-all architecture, but it definitely has it's place in the world.

Also, let's not forget that Larry Ellison wants to sell more RDMS. The notion of distributed databases like Amazon Simple DB or CouchDB means a bite out of Oracle's pie. It would be a terrible shame if Larry took home any less than he did in fiscal 2008; $84.6 million.

A fool and his data are soon parted.