Shop Class As Soulcraft
 

Has anybody else here read Shop Class As Soulcraft? It seems like a book that would really resonate with quite a few forum members. If you haven't read it, check it out. My son gave it to me for Christmas and I really enjoyed it.

I haven't read it, but I think I heard the author interviewed a while ago (probably on NPR).

Are you referring to the book in the blurb here:

http://www.amazon.com/Shop-Class-Soulcraft-Inquiry-Value/dp/1594202230

which I provide as a public service to our viewing audience??

:bangin:

:scooter:

I heard the guy on NPR once also. I like the idea. We need to teach our youth skills before we rush them off to college.

I haven't read the book, but I read this article (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/24/magazine/24labor-t.html) in the New York Times Magazine that is by the author and is based on the book.

I also heard the npr interview.

The guy has some good points, I agree that it's worth the read..

You are correct, Carl. He has a PhD in philosophy and operates a motorcycle repair shop in Richmond, VA as his livelihood. He grew up in a commune in California, was executive director of a Washington, DC think tank at one point. He's been around to say the least.

He makes a point of how wrong-headed it is to denigrate the types of work in which something useful is produced (plumbers, mechanics, carpenters, and electricians, for example) as opposed to the unmeasureable stuff that is churned out by "teams" working on ethereal, difficult-to-quantify concepts in offices. The latter, he says, is what our educational systems prepares us for, but the former is what really counts when it comes to real value and a real sense of purpose and worth in one's life.

As I said, I think it is a book that would resonate with a high per centage of the participants on this forum.

Interesting story. He makes a lot of good points. I've been turning wrenches full-time since I was 19 years old, for a total of twenty-eight years (twenty-three with MB) with no regrets. But, if I knew back then what I know now, I would have gone to college and got myself a white-collar job. Maybe if I spent the last 28 years in a cubicle I'd wish I was a blue-collar guy. :)

I think you can do both. I enjoy fixing my toys, but I can make more money sitting at a desk (and I will still be able to do that when I'm 75 if I choose too). I do think that kids need a basic understanding of how stuff work and some ability to do things with their hands. I don't expect my daughter to ever rebuild an engine, but she should understand, in general, how the engine works and what it means when the oil light comes on. To update that concept, everyone should have some idea how their home computer network works and how to do some basic troubleshooting when something goes wrong. Becoming a group of specialists is fine up to a point, but we shouldn't go too far.

Read it
 

Yep. The guy's the same age as me, and his life history sorta mirrors my own odd trajectory from blue collar to professional life, and then back to blue collar technical stuff--though in my case, I just do the technical stuff as a significant hobby obsession and still play the professional role to pay the billz. I was in the last graduating class at my high school to benefit from both Auto and Metal shop. They shut them both down in '85, the year after I graduated. Thankfully I spent my four years there gathering useful skills and technical comprehension. It's paid off in spades over the years.

I just selected it as my audible.com book for this month. I will listen to it in a couple of weeks when I hit the road again. It got pretty good reviews on their site.

I finally finished (listening to) this book. I think he had a few good points, but I also think it was about twice as long as it needed to be to make those points. It's worth reading if you have any real interest in the nature of work in the modern world.