[ ARC forum 2 ]
Written by Paul B. at 29 Jul 2002 13:58:28: Speculation loses.
As an answer to: Re: Extra speculation . . . written by George55 at 29 Jul 2002 10:42:26:
> I went to my doctor this morning. I said to him 'Are you a doctor'. He said 'Yes'.
I really, really doubt that, so your veracity is immediately in question. But I'll run with the argument just for illustration.
> He didn't say, 'Well, why don't you sit over there and spend the morning watching me deal with patients, and make your own mind up'.
No, but in fact, that is exactly how you determine his "bona fides" as a doctor; you see whether he performs the job of a doctor, perhaps by trusting others to evaluate him by proxy as it were. If you were going to be picky, you would ask to see his certificate (which is in fact, hanging on his wall) and if you were suspicious, you would contact the medical registration board and the university which supposedly issued the certificate to check that it was genuine.
In fact, you would do pretty much as I previously explained if that was your concern. In fact, the last, which is to say the least effective way to determine whether he was a doctor, would be to ask him.
And this is not a trivial matter - there have been many cases of counterfeit doctors and therapists of every kind, who claimed to be something but turned out not to be.
Sorry, you're out.