If you're so smart, why don't you want to work with your hands?

"They started out studying aerospace engineering, creative writing and urban planning. But somewhere on the path to accumulating academic credentials, they decided that working with their hands sounded more pleasant -- and lucrative -- than a lot of white-collar work. So bye-bye to term papers and graduate theses, and hello to apprenticeships to become plumbers, electricians, auto mechanics and carpenters."

Via Instapundit, who says these hands-on kinds of jobs "are harder to send offshore." I'd like to add that, quite aside from the problems with the job market these days, that there is no reason why individuals with strong intellectual aptitude need to be tracked into jobs that fully employ the mind.

Why not prefer to work primarily with your hands (and your body) and keep your mind free so you can do what you want with it? There are jobs that enhance the contemplative environment for your mind. (What are they? Carpentry?) If you have a good mind, why not keep it for yourself instead of selling it to an employer?

Isn't physical labor preferable, even — especially! — for the most intellectually gifted persons?