Hah, I haven't heard that analogy before, but I see what it's getting at. I wouldn't say it's a rule to live by, but as you learn more about technology you (usually) also learn more about its constant abuse and its critical flaws.

It’s the mediocre and peri- technologists that drive hype. Right?

I'm not sure exactly who you mean, but never believe the hype:

• Steve Jobs didn't know shit about computers and took the fame from people who did, just like Edison and Musk.
• Most people studied in machine learning hate the term "Artificial Intelligence", it's a marketing gimmick used by marketing.
• There's a similar, but lesser, sentiment in security being called "cyber".
• Anything saying "better privacy" or "more secure" without giving a specific threat scenario (like, more secure against [x] attack) - they don't know shit. Privacy and security are not linear values you can have more or less of.
• Internet of Things ('smart devices') is a privacy and security NIGHTMARE, and we've known that since day 1. Companies don't care. It's easy money.
• If you can't (hypothetically) run it yourself, you're the product.