An op/ed writer for the Wall Street Journal condescendingly implored Dr. Jill Biden, the incoming First Lady, to drop the use of the title “Doctor” because she isn’t a medical doctor.

“Madame First Lady—Mrs. Biden—Jill—kiddo: …” the column starts off, foretelling the stench of the piece by (non-Doctor of any kind) Joseph Epstein, a former editor of the Phi Beta Kappa magazine.  Epstein cites the fact that he, for some reason, was granted an honorary doctorate as a reason the title “Dr.” doesn’t really mean much anymore, although people who get an honorary doctorate are not typically referred to as “Dr.” in any serious setting.

Epstein “jokes” about his thin list of academic achievements, which includes getting a B.A. when he was in the military in the 1950s… and little else.  He was a lecturer at Northwestern University where, according to him, people mistakenly addressed him as “Doctor”–more evidence, he claims of the meaninglessness of the title. 

Epstein, in typical old man style, says back in the olden days, having a doctorate really meant something because you had to, y’know, know things like foreign languages like Greek or Latin, which is *so* applicable to today’s world outside Greece.  Now, simply completing years of study and defending a doctrinal thesis doesn’t mean as much, he claims.

Jill Biden earned her doctorate from the University of Delaware after also earning Master’s Degrees at Villanova and West Chester University.  Unlike Epstein, Biden continues to apply her education by teaching, which she intends to continue while she serves the nation as First Lady.