CHARLES ANGELICH wrote in a message to ROY J. TELLASON:

RJT>> I'm definitely of the "fix it if it's practical" school
RJT>> of thought as well, and it sure seems like the whole
RJT>> economy is geared toward tossing it and buying new,
RJT>> instead. It's a losing battle, but I'm going to continue
RJT>> to deal with things that way as long as I can manage to
RJT>> do so... 

CA>> Yes, it's a personal decision for me as well. :-) 

RJT> The problem is, the whole economy is biased against us
RJT> taking that approach. And most of the younger generations
RJT> coming up don't look at things that way, as far as I can
RJT> see. It's a damn shame, really. 

CA> I think it was a good thing when men could demonstrate their
CA> expertise by fixing things. The way it is now we are all just
CA> spectators watching others demonstrate _their_ expertise. A
CA> feeling of impotence is creeping up on mankind and a sense of
CA> helplessness mixed with a suspicion that we are all just
CA> victims. Not a healthy way for a society to feel IMO. 

I think you're on to something there...

And as Robert A. Heinlein said,  "specialization is for insects"!
 I guess I'll just go on doing the best I can with what I can,  and show my
grandkids that example,  and see what we can do to counter the trend.

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