We have entered day two of “PhDs aren’t really doctors.”
Objectively I don’t understand why this is a hill the Right feels it needs to die on, but it does.
This is what reactionary politics has wrought. Some jackass said something stupid about Jill Biden in the Wall Street Journal.
The Democrats rushed to defend the incoming First Lady, therefore the Right must attack because that is the nature of reactionary pop-culture politics.
Tucker went on a rant on his show last night about how Jill Biden is barely more of a doctor than Dr. Pepper.
Ben Shapiro, who I used to have some respect for, decided to die on this hill as well.
If you’re at a dinner and somebody introduces himself as “Dr. Smith,” you’d be rather upset to learn that he had a doctorate in musicology if you were to suffer a stroke at the table.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) December 14, 2020
This is the dumbest of takes. “Without context, let’s just assume anyone who calls themselves doctor can respond to a medical emergency” is the lowest form of lowest common denominator, anti-intellectual, populism.
Furthermore, to compare a doctorate in education (or law, for that matter) to a medical degree is the height of absurdity. Having watched my wife do the latter, it simply isn’t comparable.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) December 14, 2020
I generally hate this term, but here it feels like he’s just simping for his wife.
I just love that in a time when medical doctors should be revered as never before — we’re in the midst of a global pandemic — we’re now standing strong for the proposition that people who get doctorates in education should also be called “doctor.”
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) December 14, 2020
This one really frustrated me because I have written post after post on doctors and nurses violating HIPAA and every canon of ethics dancing and engaging in histrionics on TikTok from inside hospitals.
Matt Walsh, who is the worst part of the Daily Wire had this stupid take:
If I was a master carpenter and insisted that you address me as “Master Walsh,” you would think I was insane. I feel exactly the same way about people without medical degrees insisting that I call them doctor. In fact it’s even crazier. At least the carpenter has a useful skill.
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) December 14, 2020
I’m glad every science, math, and engineering PhD I ever studied under has no useful skills.
The closest thing I’ve seen to conceding the point that earning a doctorate entitles one to be called doctor is “well… inside the halls of academic, under limited circumstances…”
Good, then MDs get to be called doctor in hospitals and clinics only.
Then I’ve seen the point swing wildly far in the other direction where dentists and podiatrists shouldn’t be called doctor either.
And if you don’t think that podiatry is life-saving medicine, you don’t know someone over the age of 40 with Type I diabetes.
This is an unserious point that these people on the Right are making just to be fucking petty.
If you want to argue that the Left overindulges in credentialism and that they love to call upon “experts” who are not experts and whose “conventional wisdom” on topics is flat fucking wrong, that’s a debate worth having.
I’ve written several posts on precisely that when it comes to Trump’s handling of the Middle East.
But this “anyone who isn’t an MD isn’t a doctor” just to dig at Jill Biden is as shallow a thought as anything AOC had Tweeted as clapback.
All the Right is doing is burning any credibility that they have as being anything other than anti-intellectual, shit-kicking, knuckle-draggers.
There are bigger battles worth fighting but the Right has to be fucking stupid.
For the love of all things good and holy, let us not develop some form of BDS (Biden Derangement Syndrome), which it really seems like we are doing with attacking Jill Biden’s Ed.D being the first symptom.
To be fair, Ben mentioned other people with PhDs that were never publicly referred to with that title (e.g., Newt Gingrich). He also noted that Ben Carson was never called “Doctor” in the so-called news and he is a surgeon.
The notion that Jill Biden would want to be called “doctor”, of which there are many versus “First Lady” of which there have been few seems pretentious to moi. 8>)
The issue for me is that she was referring to herself or being introduced as Doctor and then talking about COVID.
Also, I work in a field where there are medical doctors and PhDs working on the same projects. In 15 years, I have only worked with one PhD who insisted on being called Doctor, but he had spent the last 10 years as a professor so while it was unusual it was not insame.
He turned out to be a total twat. In retrospect, the “please call me doctor” thing should have been a tipoff. I have a family member with a PhD in Hospitality (managing hotels and restaurants) and she also insists on being referred to as Doctor.
That is a fair criticism of Jill Biden herself, and of this conversation was limited to that I’d have to agree. But this has spiraled way beyond that into realms of ridiculousness.
I’ve often found that those that insist on the title “doctor” outside the medical or academic professions are usually pretentious. The problem here is the proles here “Doctor” they assume medical and in the context of COVID this is an issue with a public figure.
That said, these petty schoolgirls need to quit it. Who cares about the wife?
Unless she’s opening her cake hole and inserting herself where she doesn’t belong, as ALL democrat first ladies do, then lay off.
Nobody cares. Seriously, this isn’t harming anyone’s credibility.
A lot of this comes from nebulous anger that builds until something comes up that can serve as a focus point. Sometimes its a good point sometimes its just a relief value misguided but cathartic and stops the whole thing from exploding.
In this case it feels like a relief valve for anger against people who may be a subject matter expert in something using that expertise which may be an MD, PhD, certification diploma, or some service (military, civil, media) as a bludgeon to assert authority over others FAR outside of their realm of expertise.
The ruling class has done this for years by citing their qualifications or time spent in Thingy123 as evidence of their fitness to talk about Doohicky321.
Gates being asked about how to deal with Covid and pandemic response
Sportsball people being appointed advisors on inner city planning and police relations
Military vets who never fired a shot in anger speaking as authorities on defense training and policy
Political critters acting as rulers laying out policy and not servants following orders
There have been a few judas goats involved in promoting this story and it will be used by our betters as further “proof” of our anti-intellectual nature.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/04/16/sebastian-gorka-likes-to-be-called-dr-gorka-he-gets-his-way-only-in-conservative-media/
It is cultural. Conservative PhDs or MDs are not deserving of the Dr title upon introduction. While the leftist’s Ed. D is to be bestowed and admired.
I have never introduced myself as Dr. I have been introduced as a Dr. In both professional and private settings. Strangely, my former neighbor kept addressing me as Dr., but not my spouse, despite both of us having PhDs.
I do not care. But I do know PhDs working with MDs who consistently emphasize Doctor. There is a real need sometimes, especially if you have an accented English. I did have to get out my pedigree card now and then.
P. S. Did you have a chance to take a look at Dr. Bidden’s thesis? It is a treat.
There are so many aspects to this situation that I could spend hours talking it.
First of all, in common usage, Doctor refers to medical doctors. End of story. If you are introduced to someone as Dr. Soandso, you will assume they are a medical doctor of some kind.
Having a doctorate (phd) in a non-medical field is unusual enough that thinking to ask what their doctorate is in would not enter anyone’s mind.
Next, there is a lot of… well…. pretension going on. It is important to note that the press rarely refers to Ben Carson as Dr. Carson, but always refers to Jill Biden as Dr. Biden. Realistically, there is no reason for doing this other than to diminish the accomplishments of one person and elevate the accomplishments of the other. (I do the same thing by the way. I will almost always write President Trump, but I referred to Obama the same way.)
Third. Yes, this is about being petty. Sorry, but for four years, well… closer to six years, we have been inundated with nothing except petty from the folks on the left. It is “satisfying” in a base way to give it back.
Finally, what really is the issue here? Did Jill Biden earn a doctorate? Yes. Let her hold the title. Just because you do not add a ton of letters following your name does not mean she should not have pride in that accomplishment.
Been in The Sick People business for….well, a couple generations. (Yes, I AM. *that* old!). In my experience, generally , physicians are addressed as “Doctor” in clinical or professional settings.
In “the wild”, however, most are “Doug”, or “Bob”, or “Mary”.
Ref Mrs. Biden: J.Kb, You are correct in that our spokesholes need to be selective about our battles.
And, when an Ed. D. starts yapping about Da Done, well, perhaps we ought to savor our adversaries making themselves objects of ridicule, for us.
As I said: A “Dr.” of Education. Education, for God’s sake.
I’ve been around Doctors of Education for years. I’ve worked with them, argued with them, supervised them, occasionally, and been supervised. I’ve seen the people who have Doctorates of Education.
It just can’t be all that hard.
Let’s be blunt. It’s nothing special. ANYONE who’s not a complete half-wit, who’s willing to put in the time and money, can get a Doctorate of Education, or frankly a Doctorate in any of a number of dumbed down humanities/”studies” fields. Moreover, the person who routinely insists on the title being used is looking to use it to boost their own ego. They at least understand difference between certificated and competent, and want you to know of the certificated part, even if they don’t have the competent part. Generally, if they are indeed competent, they don’t care about the certificated.
I’ve a JD, but I decline the title of “Doctor,” as well as “Esquire” or “Counselor.” If you start calling me that, I’m going to ask you to stop. I don’t want to be seen as a pretentious ass.
And please don’t start telling me that we have to be “better” than the other side. I’ve been demonized for half a decade, called racist, nazi, and worse. I’ve been lied to, insulted, and patronized. I have no intention of turning the other cheek.
The left can take their “unity” pleas, fold them along the long edge, and kindly stuff them up their ass.
Corners and points. You forgot, corners and points. (Heinleinian reference)
Just imagine the hell the media and the left would have unleashed if this had been the current first lady. Investigation after investigation
If a person uses a form of address other than the typical “Mister,” “Miss,” or “Missus,” then out of simple common courtesy I will use it in the appropriate context. We’re talking basic Emily Post level good manners here, folks. (Of course, hand-in-hand with the use of good manners and common courtesies is that the other party reciprocates. I’m polite by default, but if you act like an asshole than I will start treating you like an asshole.)
A doctorate is a doctorate. Not all are doctoral programs are equally rigorous, true, but it would be fallacious to think that they are. Likewise, just because to doctors hold a doctoral degree in the same field, from the same institution, for the same coursework, and graduated on the same exact day… It’s nonsense to assume they are necessarily the same level of worth.
There are doctors who are genius, there are doctor who are couldn’t pour the proverbial piss out of a boot with the instructions written on the heel. There are ditch-diggers who possess the wisdom of the Buddha, there are ditch-diggers who are too dumb to droll on themselves.
Treat every individual as an individual. Assuming that any given person’s credentials cloaks them in the same glory as everyone else with that credential is a Collectivist trap.
Sincerely Yours,
Rev. Dr. [Real Name Redacted], Esq. ThD CP N.P.
I work with guys who are Ph.D.’s in Physics and Math. Known them for years. Nice guys. First time I found out that they were Doctors was when I saw them listed as such in the department employee list.