Dr. Jack a world famous heart surgeon, was having a July 4^th Party. On the morning of the 4^th his septic tank backed up. Dr.Jack called out a plumber. The plumber said he would have to charge holiday rates. After 2 hours, the sewer was fixed, and the plumber handed him a bill for $1200.
Dr. Jack went ballistic, "Hey, I'm Dr.Jack, a world renowned heart surgeon, even I don't make $600 an hour!"
The plumber replied, "Neither did I when I was a heart surgeon."

Not a bad joke, not far from the truth either. There's not much appreciation for craft and trade people these days -- till you need one. BITD we had "shop class" and "trade schools". Those have disappeared from most school districts, another casualty of liability costs. (I used to love the 2x4 sticking through the wall in woodshop -- kick back from the tablesaw)

We need to encourage young people who don't dig college, to enter the trades -- and be proud of it. Too many see suits, BMWs, and bling as the only way. I live in Arizona. The trades here are dominated by people with a Mexican background. Most are highly skilled, well paid, and a pleasure to work with. They're also hard to find.

A friend of mine ran a tool & mold shop. Toolmakers can make $60,000 in a good year. The company had a 5 year apprenticeship program, with formal training, regular raises. They had to bring in apprentices from Germany, Switzerland & Russia. Americans weren't interested. They'd rather work at WalMart I guess.