Thursday, July 31, 2008

Bogus Degrees



Reading about people buying several false doctorates by mail tickles my funny bone, until I read about the ones who got such mailed degrees in gynecology and obstetrics. I guess a degree in, say, plumbing or electrical engineering would be pretty scary, too.

How odd that I'm not as perturbed by false doctorates in theology or in economics or in crime fighting. I probably should be. That I'm not might show something about the effects of this culture and its strong strain of anti-intellectualism. What do you think?

I once knew a university librarian who collected false degrees from all over the world if they were cheap enough. He had them all framed on the walls of his cubicle. I never thought that his little joke might have caused him legal trouble. Or perhaps collecting those degrees is OK as long as you don't try to use them.