Man In The Doorway wrote:

What drives the common woodworker? A deeply suppressed desire
to please the long deceased father who never gave him love as
a child? The need to be seen as an alpha male by everyone else
around him? The insecurities of being a non-intellectual
blue-collar common man with calluses on his hands and feet?

An intellectually conceited troll person who probably won't be
able to learn anything from even the clearest responses (I'm
inclined to agree with Sidney Lanier's observation that
"Swinehood hath no remedy," but will suggest:

A desire to have or give something more beautiful and/or more
functional (or both) than would otherwise be possible.

A desire to create - to convert a personal vision into reality;
and by so doing to enrich one's own life and the lives of all
others touched by that reality.

Why do hobbyist woodworkers feel the need to own the same
caliber tools as the professionals? Is there really anything
wrong with Craftsman or Black and Decker products? Probably
not. Insecurity motivates too many woodworkers to waste hard
earned cash on tools they have absolutely no use for. Why do
they feel such a need to show off, when nobody really cares
what they own? .... when nobody really cares about their
projects? .... when anyone could go out and buy the same desk,
futon, or humidor for half of what is costs to build one?

For the same reason that you don't own a Yugo. As with other
products, experienced users recognize a spectrum of quality; and
discover that higher quality products deliver the greatest amount
of satisfaction.

You may not care what other people do - but your caring isn't
particularly important. My SO is particularly pleased with her
new light table (that masquerades as a living room end table when
not in use) which allows her to trace her drawings onto fabric
for quilting. Where would you buy such a thing (at /any/ price)?

Next time you're out shopping, take a gander at your options for
heating systems and let me know what kind of prices you find on
furnaces that come with a lifetime supply of free fuel. I doubt
you'll find one for less than what it costs me to build one in my
shop.

Insecurity!

Sorry to hear that - you might build self-confidence and become
more secure if you spent a bit of your leisure time creating a
few useful and beautiful objects in your own workshop.

--
Morris Dovey
DeSoto, Iowa USA