Is There a Doctor in the White House? Not if You Need an M.D
By: Joseph Epstein (WSJ)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Madame First Lady—Mrs. Biden—Jill—kiddo: a bit of advice on what may seem like a small but I think is a not unimportant matter. Any chance you might drop the "Dr." before your name? "Dr. Jill Biden " sounds and feels fraudulent, not to say a touch comic. Your degree is, I believe, an Ed.D., a doctor of education, earned at the University of Delaware through a dissertation with the unpromising title "Student Retention at the Community College Level: Meeting Students' Needs." A wise man once said that no one should call himself "Dr." unless he has delivered a child. Think about it, Dr. Jill, and forthwith drop the doc.
I taught at Northwestern University for 30 years without a doctorate or any advanced degree. I have only a B.A. in absentia from the University of Chicago—in absentia because I took my final examination on a pool table at Headquarters Company, Fort Hood, Texas, while serving in the peacetime Army in the late 1950s. I do have an honorary doctorate, though I have to report that the president of the school that awarded it was fired the year after I received it, not, I hope, for allowing my honorary doctorate. During my years as a university teacher I was sometimes addressed, usually on the phone, as "Dr. Epstein." On such occasions it was all I could do not to reply, "Read two chapters of Henry James and get into bed. I'll be right over."
I was also often addressed as Dr. during the years I was editor of the American Scholar, the quarterly magazine of Phi Beta Kappa. Let me quickly insert that I am also not a member of Phi Beta Kappa, except by marriage. Many of those who so addressed me, I noted, were scientists. I also received a fair amount of correspondence from people who appended the initials Ph.D. to their names atop their letterheads, and have twice seen PHD on vanity license plates, which struck me as pathetic. In contemporary universities, in the social sciences and humanities, calling oneself Dr. is thought bush league.
The Ph.D. may once have held prestige, but that has been diminished by the erosion of seriousness and the relaxation of standards in university education generally, at any rate outside the sciences. Getting a doctorate was then an arduous proceeding: One had to pass examinations in two foreign languages, one of them Greek or Latin, defend one's thesis, and take an oral examination on general knowledge in one's field. At Columbia University of an earlier day, a secretary sat outside the room where these examinations were administered, a pitcher of water and a glass on her desk. The water and glass were there for the candidates who fainted. A far cry, this, from the few doctoral examinations I sat in on during my teaching days, where candidates and teachers addressed one another by first names and the general atmosphere more resembled a kaffeeklatsch. Dr. Jill, I note you acquired your Ed.D. as recently as 15 years ago at age 55, or long after the terror had departed.
The prestige of honorary doctorates has declined even further. Such degrees were once given exclusively to scholars, statesmen, artists and scientists. Then rich men entered the lists, usually in the hope that they would donate money to the schools that had granted them their honorary degrees. (My late friend Sol Linowitz, then chairman of Xerox, told me that he had 63 honorary doctorates.) Famous television journalists, who passed themselves off as intelligent, followed. Entertainers, who didn't bother feigning intelligence, were next.
At Northwestern, recent honorary-degree recipients and commencement speakers have included Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers. I sent a complaining email to the school's president about the low quality of such men as academic honorands, with the result that the following year the commencement speaker and honorand was Billie Jean King —who, with the graduating members of the school's women's tennis team, hit tennis balls out to the audience of graduating students and the parents who had paid $70,000 a year for their university education, or perhaps I should say for their "credential."
Political correctness has put paid to any true honor an honorary doctorate may once have possessed. If you are ever looking for a simile to denote rarity, try "rarer than a contemporary university honorary-degree list not containing an African-American woman." Then there are all those honorary degrees bestowed on Bill Cosby, Charlie Rose and others who, owing to their proven or alleged sexual predations, have had to be rescinded. Between the honorary degrees given to billionaires, the falsely intelligent, entertainers and the politically correct, just about all honor has been drained from honorary doctorates.
As for your Ed.D., Madame First Lady, hard-earned though it may have been, please consider stowing it, at least in public, at least for now. Forget the small thrill of being Dr. Jill, and settle for the larger thrill of living for the next four years in the best public housing in the world as First Lady Jill Biden.
Mr. Epstein is author, most recently, of "Gallimaufry: A Collection of Essays, Reviews, Bits."
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Let's see, Epstein, 83, calls her (69) 'kiddo' in the piece and says she should drop the "Doctor" title.
Tucker Carlson said she is a doctor as is "doctor pepper.'
Is it ok for people to go after a degree simply to gain status?
Does the title of Ph.D. mean anything anymore?
(thanks to the progressives, who have used it!)
Ah, the idle rich.
No pictures or cartoons
Lots of educated progressive idiots out there
with degrees!
As we have seen in recent years, there has been a dumbing down effect, with growing hostility towards education and especially science. It's as if people think ignorance is preferable. Perhaps that's why so many engage in it willfully.
All based on his unsolicited, misogynist opinion.
Wow, comparing a College Professor to a brand name. MORE misogyny.
Perhaps you could clarify you question by giving evidence that it relates to Dr. Biden's pursuit of her degree.
Well since Epstein wrote an Op/Ed about it, it MUST.
Tucker Carlson?
Jill earned it, she can use it. Why are Republicans are making such a big deal out of this?
Envy.
I guess you all missed this oped getting excoriated...
The gop does poorly with women but it gets worse!
I know many phds in hard sciences who would scoff at being called a doctor. What kind of an insecure person with a doctorate in education would insist on that title? Even lawyers aren't insecure enough to demand being called "doctor" with their JD.
That's undoubtedly because a JD is NOT a Doctorate Sean.
A J.D. is entitled to be called Doctor, though no lawyer I know of is insecure enough to use that title.
And naturally, the objection to the title is based on the " chance of confusing the public about a lawyer's actual qualifications (e.g. if the public might be left with the impression that the lawyer is a doctor of medicine "
Prove it Sean.
A JD is a Juris Doctor.
Juris Docto rate*
*Correction Doctor of Jurisprudence
Your point is silly. It is common convention for holders of doctorates to use the honorific doctor. The fact that attorneys follow a different convention does not obviate all other conventions.
It is normal. It is routine. It is amazing that people can be this fucking petty. Partisanship rots the mind.
Which is the equivalent of a Masters degree, NOT a Ph.D.
No it's not.
It's common convention for medical doctors to be called Dr. It prevents situations like where Whoopi Goldberg publicly pitched Dr. Jill Biden for Surgeon General on the View, assuming she was, you know, an actual Doctor.
No. the person is not a doctorate.
You don't say an MD is a medical doctorate.
Yes, Sean, that is common convention. And it is common convention for holders of doctorates to be called Doctor.
Are you not aware of this?
You are kidding me. You present a mistake by Whoopi Goldberg as evidence that it is wrong for holders of doctorates to go by 'doctor'? Tell me you are not going there.
your link is bullshit. It doesn't give any information
No,it really isn't. Drs in education are not commonly referred to a "drs"
I'm using it as a famous example that illustrates the point. People who are called "Dr" are assumed to be medical doctors.
I corrected my comment.
I was wrong
Now you're kidding. I've know professional educators who actually PhDs in education called doctors
The Superintendent at our local school is called Doctor T.....
Then that's their mistake.....
It's a discussion of why lawyers, who are entitled to be called Dr., largely refuse to be called by that title.
How you can call that bullshit it beyond me.
That is simply ignorance.
I am assuming you went to an accredited university. Did you forget the honorific used to address your professors?
Click on the link. There was nothing there except an ad for a book. There was no explanation on who are entitled to be called doctor.
Indeed, I know at least a few lawyers with whom I play or coach baseball who use the term "Esquire" in their title. And make no mistake, not a game is played without the rest of us giving them shit for that...
That might be their preference. Just as it can be someone's preference to be called "doctor" if they earn a doctorate. If someone holds a doctorate, they are entitled to be called doctor. It's that simple. So I'm not sure why you're making such a fuss over nothing?
It's a link to an ABA journal article. You have to login.
The title alone should be enough for this argument, to the extent it is even is as argument, anyway. Even the wikipedia article you cited notes that the JD is the same academic standing as the MD.
There's really nothing more to be said at this point.
I called them Professor. I know plenty of PHD's, including my sister, and not one of them demands to be called "Dr" in non-academic environments.
People are free to insist upon it, but it's a mark of insecurity.
The fuss seems to be that lawyers are entitled to call themselves Dr and do not.
I simply stated that fact.
I did not ask what you called them, I asked about the honorific used to address your professors. Did everyone call them professor? Nobody addressed PhD's as Dr.?
What is the point of making such a stupid argument against an extremely well established convention?
I'm not doing that. I take way too many chances clicking on people's links as it is
I said I was wrong, didn't I? and I corrected my statement. Nice to know you don't acknowledge when people own up to errors and admit mistakes. That's quite the character you have, Sean
More likely it is evidence that Ms. Goldberg doesn't do her homework before she opens her yap.
And let's think about that for a minute. To become a lawyer or Doctor of Jurisprudence, one spends 4 years getting a bachelor's degree, then one spends 3 years in law school. I believe that once you graduate law school you have earned the right to call yourself a lawyer, except you have to pass the bar to actually be able to practice.
Now...this is what I know about MDs. They earn a bachelors, then they spend 4 years in medical school, the last year as an intern. Then there's the residency requirements. Lawyers spend maybe 8 years at most to earn their PhD. Medical doctors spend up to 10 or more to get their MD.
So is a JD really the equivalent of an MD?
No. It is more like a Master's degree. But I would not take that away from the holders of JD. To me the question is why people are so petty as to complain that Dr. Biden does not deserve the well established honorific that is used worldwide.
Oh..boy. A thought. What if a lawyer got a PhD in Law? Wouldn't some law professors have those?
Nice to know you don't acknowledge when people own up to errors and admit mistakes.
The only mistake I saw you acknowledge was retracting your claim about calling a lawyer a Juris Doctor instead of a Juris doctorate.
You did not retract calling my link bullshit nor falsely claiming it linked to a book, which it did not. All I did was explain what the actual contents of the link were. Sorry that offends.
I was trying to end the discussion on whether a lawyer qualified to be called Dr. From what you actually wrote, I have no idea whether you agreed me with or with Dulay. You never actually made an argument that I'm aware of other than attacking the nature of my link.
I can't read your mind, only what you wrote. So I couldn't acknowledge a mistake I wasn't even aware you made.
It is more like a Master's degree
I'll requote from above:
he Juris Doctor degree ( J.D. or JD ), also known as the Doctor of Jurisprudence degree ( J.D. , JD , D.Jur. or DJur ), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. In Australia, Canada, the United States, and some other common law countries, the Juris Doctor is earned by completing law school . It has the academic standing of a professional doctorate (in contrast to a research doctorate ) in the United States, [6] [7] [8] a master's degree in Australia, [9] and a second-entry baccalaureate degree in Canada [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] (in all three jurisdictions, the same as other professional degrees, such as M.D. / D.O. or D.D.S. / D.M.D. , the degrees required to be a practicing physician or dentist , respectivel
My comment to you.
If you would try reading all the comments in the thread, you might not fall into these traps
I figured you would cherry-pick so as to deflect.
Your complaint is petty and ignorant. A doctorate holder has historically been called Dr. Pretending this is not true is a vacuous argument.
IT's not a tradition, that's the point. Outside of academic settings, very few non medical doctors are called Dr. Those that insist upon it are often going to be met by eyerolls.
What's the point of making so many stupid arguments against convention?
There are higher degrees than JD such as LL.M.
Okay, when someone insists on denying the obvious, there is no reasoning to be had.
I have to agree with you on this point (that's a first). I have a J.D. I would never call myself a "doctor", but it is a doctorate, by definition. It is not a Master's degree. There are Master's degrees in law.
" A Juris Doctor degree is a "first professional doctorate", like an MD medical degree."
Some of my clients call me Dr. Feelgood, but that is a whole other story... (haha)
Why would anyone make a fuss about that?
I can't believe I'm agreeing with you.
Did not know that. Thank-you
Ask Dulay. He's the one who believed lawyers aren't entitled to be called Doctor.
You're the one carrying on about non-medical individuals being referred to as "doctor."
Of course they are.
Of course they are not. They are assumed to have a far superior knowledge of a particular subject. Period.
Every teacher or School Board head who ever had a PHD, that I know, expected to be addressed as Doctor, maybe not at the supermarket, but anywhere on school grounds or acting in their professional capacity.
Ditto, my daughter expects to be called Doctor at work (NOAA) or when she is teaching. Every piece of literature, and identification, business cards, the plagues, awards all refer to her as Doctor as do the nameplates on her offices.
No one has a problem with Dr. Steve Lyons on the Weather Channel when there are hurricanes or tornadoes to watch.
Dr. Rick Knabb? Dr Greg Forbes? Dr. Erika Navaro? Dr. Greg Postel.
All PHDs in meteorology. All deserving of the title Doctor.
Epstein just has 50 years of degree envy bottled up inside his misogynistic head.
And so does anyone mocking Mrs Biden's PHD.
When I was in college as a science major, and later in dental school, every professor who had an earned PhD, DDS, or MD was addressed as "doctor". That included my English and history instructors.
An academic doctorate is considered to outrank a professional degree, such as an MD or DDS. So Dr. Biden has at least as much right, if not more, to use the title than an MD or DO.
All of my non-Science teachers were called doctor, if they had a PhD
My HIGH SCHOOL English teacher that has her PhD was always called "Dr. Taylor."
My professors in college with PhDs were always called Dr.
How ironic...
Doctor is an academic title that originates from the Latin word of the same spelling and meaning. [1] The word is originally an agentive noun of the Latin verb docēre [dɔˈkeːrɛ] 'to teach'. It has been used as an academic title in Europe since the 13th century..."
Doctor is a Latin word, and it was borrowed from Latin already formed, with a meaning, namely ' teacher '
The editor of the WSJ hit the nail on the head:
"Why go to such lengths to highlight a single op-ed on a relatively minor issue? My guess is that the Biden team concluded it was a chance to use the big gun of identity politics to send a message to critics as it prepares to take power,” Gigot said. “There’s nothing like playing the race or gender card to stifle criticism."
Fox and other right wing outlets are making a big deal out of Dr. Jill Biden using her title...if it is a relatively minor issue why are they jumping on the bandwagon?
and other right wing outlets are making a big deal out of Dr. Jill Biden using her title...i
Who turned this into a big deal?
Those who frown of fakes and imitation!
"Jill Biden, by contrast, was a disciple of learning–a bachelor’s degree in English and a doctorate, both from UD, bookends to master’s degrees from West Chester University in reading education in 1981 and Villanova University in English in 1987."
She can stop calling herself doctor! She's diminished whatever a Ph.D was supposed to mean!
Like the current soon to be ex First Lady, Melania Trump, and her lying. She maintained that she completed her bachelor's degree in a highly competitive architecture program from the University of Ljubljana. However, the reality is that Melania did not graduate.
That is only in the minds of those who could not achieve what SHE has, and their jealousy and male misogyny is the only way they know how to deal with her being more intelligent than they are.
Women ya know......house, kitchen, brood hog.....the only places and things women should ever want should be.
Why? Because most men think that is all they worth.
Vic,
A Ph.D. is called a doctor. I had 2 high school teachers who had Ph.D.'s and we called the doctor. My future son in law has a Ph.D. and as a Nurse Practitioner in Psychology and almost all his peers are referred to as doctor. He worked 8 years to get that. He deserves the title.
How?
They are just going to miss the stripper in the WH.
Their motto: Dr. bad, stripper good.
Exactly. If anyone is willing to grind 8 years of college and 4 years as an intern, they deserve to be called "doctor".
How so? By marrying a politician you hate? Seems a lot more like simple mindless retaliation coming from sore losers.
Why did I just picture the character Peter Griffin on Family Guy saying that?
That is, in a word, RIDICULOUS.
I'm still waiting for you to explain how. I believe quite a few of us are.
Let me elaborate before I break everyone's heart and call it a night. This would apply, not just to Jill Biden, but to all those who view a Ph.D as a status symbol or a path to a certain level of wealth and beyond that what the University has become. Higher education has a moral goal that it tries to enrich and preserve its curriculum. It wants to produce a certain kind of human being, not just hand out diploma's. This standard has been lost since the university was overtaken by the first real progressives in the late 60's. Today, modern education is failing at the lower levels and is all about correcting ethnocentrism at the higher levels - teaching that no single culture is better than any other as well as indoctrinating students in liberal arts courses has denigrated education in America. The bottom line is that the modern university has demeaned the value of the diplomas it gives out.
Thank you all for the interest
Good night.
I find it the height of hypocrisy for the Editor of the WSJ to claim that the Biden's were the ones that 'highlighted' the op/ed since HE was the one that published it.
BTW, since I quoted Gigot's op/ed, I am posting a link to it, per the CoC.
Well how about you go to every university Vic and demand that all the professors who have "Doctor" in their names to stop using the honor they worked their butts off for. Trump was POTUS but hardly a president so from now on he should only be known as Mr. Trump.
She earned it and like all others who have the degree can use the title
Seriously? Who complains that someone who holds a doctorate degree uses the doctor honorific. A holder of a doctorate is referred to, properly, as Dr.
This is common knowledge (is it not)?
Man, I hope this is not an early indication of the pointless nonsense that will be published. Hard to believe the WSJ editorial staff allowed this petty, transparently partisan attack piece to be published.
We had ODS, then TDS and now BDS will take hold, because partisans (left & right) have to "win".
... or look like damn fools.
Well, it was bound to happen with the partisans. It's not about issues. It's about remaining in power.
Apparently there are enough people nodding their heads that looking foolish doesn't seem to matter to them. If they riled up the other side and the platform gets clicks it's good to them. Makes me kinda sad some days.
And those in power get to define what America "is".
The amount of energy some put into supporting or opposing politicians has become ridiculous and it just seems to get worse everyday. They aren’t worth it folks.
I concur.
It is too much. I refuse to take part in calling people I don’t know names, calling them stupid, feckless this or that. It’s childish. You can’t even give an opinion without someone trying to attack or label you. SMH
How the hell can people go from praising our current FLOTUS who is known for being a stripper and college drop out to running down Dr. Jill Biden for being a highly educated woman whos tits we haven't seen?
I guess that means we should refer to Mr. Martin Luther King Jr. from now on because one petty journalist wants to redefine what a doctorate is. Educated persons understand that the honorific "Dr." can mean a specialty in many different fields, sad sniveling poorly educated dumb shits think it should only mean what they think it means.
She is a Dr. She earned the title, don't like it, too damn bad.
Dr. Martin Luther King,
His doctorate was in theology would anyone condemn Dr. King for using the honor?
Those that attack Dr. Biden for using the honor should reflect before sticking both feet in their mouth.
eology would anyone condemn Dr. King for using the honor?
Well yeah, he plagiarized his thesis. He doesn't deserve the title.
I'm not surprised that would be your take, Sean. Boston University doesn't feel the same about it.
There is no question he plagiarized his thesis and your petty attempt to deflect by making personal attacks against me won't change that.
To quote Boston University:
. "There is no question," the committee said in a report to the university's provost, "but that Dr. King plagiarized in the dissertation"
It's okay for "Dr." King. What happens to other students who plagiarize their thesis?
Gee Sean, I have never noticed that you objected to members citing "Dr. Martin Luther King" here on NT. I must have missed that bit of outrage...
Petty attacks, what in the world are you babbling on about, Sean. Because I said that I'm not surprised that would be your take?
You spelled out that it would be your take in your comment.
The fact of the matter is that Boston University noted that King plagiarized some passages but felt that his dissertation still "makes an intelligent contribution to scholarship.'' they did not recind it.
You should take your argument up with Boston University.
When one is losing an argument, one resorts to complaining about personal attacks and other meta.
I know...because this is one of my tactics
That's your fault then. It's come up before,
Of course they didn't. He had a federal holiday named after him by the time it was discovered. If an ordinary student did what King did, they would not be granted a doctorate. Respectable universities tend to frown upon intentional theft of another's ideas.
Boston University is considered a respectable university by most and has a fairly high ranking. Their doctorial subjects are also highly rated.
Once again if you have a problem with BU awarding Dr. King his Ph.D. you should address your complaint to them.
Trump is a spin doctor, but he is also known to many as Dr. Death. That's the title he earned.
Over 300,000 to date and continuing...
It's hard to be bothered much by this.
I think if your degree as a D in it, and you earned it by actually going to school and doing work for it (i.e. not an honorary doctorate) then make people call you doctor if you want.
However, within certain professions, it might be considered gauche or even ethically dubious. Just be prepared for that.
If Jill Biden wants to be called Doctor, and she's earned that right academically, why get bent out of shape over it? Just call her doctor. It doesn't diminish anyone else. People want to be called all sorts of things: Sir, Mister, Mizz, Doctor, whatever. Maybe Jill will wake up one day and want to be called Jim. Who cares? Just appease these people, so you can carry on a conversation, and then get on with the rest of your life.
I want to be called Princess Unicorn Rainbow Farts.
May we shorten that to PURF?
I suppose.
This is what I think.
I wish that people like Jill Biden, who are "academic" doctors, did not insist on being referred to as "doctor". It is misleading. People are going to think she is some form of medical doctor.
In academic settings the title "doctor" imparts that the person has achieved a high level of academic excellence , which is important in that context. Out in the "real" world, people are just not impressed by someone having a doctorate in a non medical field.
Having said that, here is my other point about Jill Biden putting "Dr." in front of her name - WHO GIVES A SHIT ? It isnt hurting anyone for her to use that title, and making this a "thing" by the right is just more evidence of how out of whack their priorities are. For five years a lot of them have accepted every bizarre and absurd thing Trump has done, often breaking societal norms, and they havent said a thing about Trumps myriad and multiple and countless blundering and blubbering, but now they want to be "offended" by Jill Biden? ROFL.
I don' think anyone is offended by Jill Biden. A simple op-ed making the points you did caused a blizzard of outrage on the left and the usual cries of sexism and led to Northwestern disassociating itself from the author.
The professionally outraged left made this mountain out of a molehill.
The difference between me and the person you are mentioning is I would never write an op ed about something so trivial.
Yet thanks to the left's insanity over a trivial Op-ed, here we are. The typical leftwing insanity has erupted with the de rigeur accusations of sexism and the cancellation of the author of a trivial op-ed.
Amazingly, a site search reveals that many of the same people who are apparently are so offended by the idea that anyone might not think the honorific Dr. is necessary before Jill Biden's name failed to refer to Newt Gingrich, PH.D. as Dr. Gingrich. Imagine my surprise.
In fact, those most vociferous about this "common convention" apparently have no problem calling Dr. (as I must now call him) Gingrich just plain ole Gingrich. Not even Speaker. I guess partisanship truly rots the mind.
Sean,
I don't think the point is to be offended. I think that a person has the right when they get a Ph.D. to be called doctor or not. If Newt prefers not to be called that, that is fine. But this article claims that being called doctor is being a fraud on some level, and it's not. It's a matter of choice.
I’m willing to give up my title as Dr. Feelgood if it helps soothe all the manufactured outrage and butt hurt.
So, this suggestion may actually have some merit to it because there is some precedent.
Several people with titles in American government have had advanced degrees and some have even been medical doctors. Woodrow Wilson had a PhD in political science, but I'm guessing they still called him "Mr. President." Several presidents have been lawyers. But, for example, nobody called Bill Clinton or Barack Obama "Doctor." Neither did they force anyone to call them "Esquire."
Rand Paul - a fairly high profile senator - is an actual medical doctor but I think people always call him "Senator Paul." In fact, there are currently 17 physicians in Congress and I think they are all generally called "Representative," "Senator," or "Congressperson." In session, it's generally something like "The Distinguished Gentleman or Lady."
Though "First Lady" isn't technically a government position, it is a pretty special - and entirely unique - title connected to government. People will already address and refer to Mrs. Biden as "First Lady." So, it does seem like it might be a little bit tortured and unnecessary to require that that be expanded to "First Lady Dr. Jill Biden" or "Dr. First Lady" or something similar.