[1Old Pro]

Home Depot and Mexican immigration brought home the image that building and construction was merely a physical activity, not a skill and talent, in other words anyone with a pick-up truck and who was willing to get sweaty was suddenly an expert tile man, a landscaper, a roofer, a painter, a carpenter, sheet rock man, concrete expert, roofer, or whatever, and man does it show in modern America.

which is why rooms aren't square and walls aren't straight.

[ansel12]

Rough sheetrock finishing in million dollar California homes, shoddy trim work, cracked concrete, roofing companies that doe well but whose shoddy work shows when Southern California finally gets some rain, and bizarre things seen in plumbing and electrical work, skilled “landscaping” work that is now thought of as someone who mows your yard and uses a trimmer and rakes it up, retaining walls done that bulge within a few years, bathroom tile that shows flaws within a few years or perhaps the sealer was forgotten, house painters that merely know how to use a brush and a roller with no deep knowledge.

Anyone who has looked at the ramshackle building that these third world countries do with their total lack of skilled trades, would know that they are never going to be the equivalent of the skilled American and European craftsmen of 1970s pre-immigration.

[GingisK]

which is why rooms aren't square and walls aren't straight.

Bubble level? We don't need no stinking bubble level.

[E.Allen]

I had an older house and was installing a new door frame. It seems you could have the frame plumb (hinge side straight up and down) or square (90 degree corners) but not at the same time.

I finally got frustrated and came back with my Porta Power,
a hydraulic jack with extensions and attachments with an
8000 lb capacity, usually used on damaged cars or equipment to bend or force parts back after damage. I was able to convince the wall studs to go back where they belonged to install the door frame correctly.