Absolutely. We should strive to master our surroundings. One thing is choosing not to repair your car today, because you have other things that give you greater value, another thing is not having the choice to repair it because you don't know how to. At a minimum, a human should know basic operating principles, repair and maintenance of their machines and buildings. Unfortunately, as most people chose to remain ignorant to their surroundings, manufactures get away with making devices less and less serviceable.

At what level should I know it? There is a famous essay “I pencil” that posits no one person knows how to create a pencil (http://www.joshharness.com/2012/10/nobody-knows-how-to-make-...)

I can tell you how to make a year's supply of charcoal in a couple of hours. Or, how to use a knife to make a writing quill from a feather, and how to make a lifetime supply of ink from household materials.

Making a pencil is a highly fragmented industrial process, even at the 19th century level. Just making the "lead" is quite sophisticated.

There is much satisfaction in being a maker - or at least being more than just a consumer.