That's Dr. Biden to you, bub.

If you've been paying attention to the non-COVID, non-Trump coup news, you may have seen that one Joseph Epstein - essayist, editor, and former lecturer at Northwestern - wrote an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal on non-physicians using the title "doctor." In particular, he doesn't like non-physician Jill Biden using it.

My husband had a PhD in Economics. He didn't pursue a career in academia but, rather, worked as a consultant. Professionally, he used the title Doctor. Why not? He'd earned it. His clients liked having someone who had a doctorate from a prestigious university (incoming namedrop: Harvard), and it was handy when he appeared as an expert witness.

Jim grew up in a working class family that became a poor family after his father was killed in a work accident (he was a brakeman on the Boston & Maine Railroad) when Jim was eleven. Getting a PhD from Harvard: A BIG DEAL. 

Admittedly, I found it a bit goofy when Jim used it when making restaurant reservations. His assumption was that we'd get a better seat if they thought he was a doctor (i.e., a physician). I was always concerned that some patron would have a heart attack or start choking, and the restaurant manager would ask Dr. Diggins for help. 'What exactly are you going to do if you're called on to save a life? Talk about the IS/LM curves?'

My brother Tom has a PhD, too. While he was in the midst of a very successful career as a civil engineer - he oversaw some pretty big-deal projects, including the construction of the Camden Yards, the Baltimore Orioles' stadium - he managed to earn his doctorate in Communication Theory and Information Management from the University of Maryland. He then went on to a 20 year second career as a professor of project management at Northern Arizona University. Professionally, Tom uses Dr. Rogers. Why not? He earned it. And, by the way, if you grew up in Main South Worcester, which wasn't exactly crawling with PhD's, this was A BIG DEAL.

At the age of 55, Jill Biden earned her doctorate (a Doctor of Education from the University of Delaware). She now teaches at a community college in Virginia. She goes by Dr. Biden. Why not? She earned it. Her career path has been non-traditional, but she didn't just want to be a Senator's wife, a Vice President's wife, a President's wife. Having a EdD is A BIG DEAL.

Then along comes stuffy, snotty, snobby old Joseph Epstein with what can only be seen as an entirely gratuitous attack on Jill Biden.

Here's how his piece started out:

“Madame First Lady — Mrs. Biden — Jill — kiddo: a bit of advice on what might seem like a small but I think is not an unimportant matter,” writer Joseph Epstein began. “Any chance you might drop the ‘Dr.’ before your name? ‘Dr. Jill Biden’ sounds and feels a touch fraudulent, not to mention comical.” (Source: WaPo)

Epstein has gotten a ton of blowback on social media for what is seen as standard issue misogyny, starting with the use of "kiddo." Throughout the tone is snotty, snobby, and condescending. But I also see plenty of plain old classism going on here.

Her degree - sniff sniff - is a lowly EdD. It came from - sniff sniff - a state university. She teaches at a sniff sniff - community college. And the title of her dissertation? Well, to Epstein's ears, "Student Retention at the Community College Level" sounds "unpromising."

Frankly, I think it sounds completely promising.

Who attends community college? Working class folks. Those striving to improve their lot in life. First-in-the-family to go to college. Making sure that these students can overcome the considerable odds stacked against them and finish their degrees and - fingers crossed - go on to a four-year college is very important. A lot more important than plenty of the dissertations written at more prestigious universities. (Case in point, my husband's was titled A Short Term Model of Federal Reserve Behavior in the 1960's.)

I suspect that Jill Biden's students are quite happy to address her as "Dr. Biden." Having someone with a doctorate teaching you confers value. 

I went to a small, no-name Catholic college in the late-sixties, early seventies - a school founded in 1919 to educate the daughters of Boston's Irish (and to lesser extent Italian) immigrants. Most of the students of my era were the grand- or great-grand-daughters of Irish (and to lesser extent Italian) immigrants. Many of us were the first generation to college. Many of our professors were nuns or priests. We addressed them as "Sister" and "Father." Most other professors were addressed as "Doctor", not "Professor." (I was a sociology major, and ours was a pretty left wing department, so we called most of our teachers by their first names.)

When I began graduate school at a big name, prestigious university (Columbia), I found out that I wasn't cut out to get a PhD. And that a professor was "Professor" - never "Doctor". It's kind of a class thing. 

Anyway, if Jill Biden wants to be called Dr. Biden, that's good enough for me. 

As for Joseph Epstein, that's Dr. Biden to you, too, bud.