But at a time when the American factory seems to be a shrinking presence, and when good manufacturing jobs have vanished, perhaps never to return, there is something deeply troubling about this dilution of American craftsmanship.

The Home Depot approach to craftsmanship - simplify it, dumb it down, hire a contractor - is one signal that mastering tools and working with one's hands is receding in America as a hobby, as a valued skill, as a cultural influence that shaped thinking and behavior in vast sections of the country

The Obama administration does worry publicly about manufacturing, a first cousin of craftsmanship.