Geesh. And tradesmen are laughed at and spit on by the “educated.” My buddy pulls in $300 an hour as a plumber for high end houses. I make more as a fabricator /machinist than I ever did in my engineering profession. It isn’t even worth the time to go to college in those crap degrees.
I seldom see machining listed as a career choice, but qualified machinists are always in demand and the pay is decent for hands-on type work. I was making $78k when I retired last year after working 50 years in the field, and I was never without a job.
Anyone of reasonable intelligence that likes making things, has a practical knowledge of math and good spatial perception could become a good machinist.