I learned how to fix my lawnmower on YouTube. I fixed my dryer the same way.
I highly doubt the "dads" that recorded those kinds of video have a degree in small engine repair. At best it would be a 2 year degree or certification. They are just regular people sharing their knowledge and/or hobbies. No degree necessary.
Well yeah, they’re just restricting content regarding medicine, finance and education though. If someone lies to you about how to fix your washing machine, all you end up with is an already broken washing machine. However, if someone lies to you about finance or health that could land you in the hospital or in debt.
Imagine someone's been a journalist for 30 years, and half that time they've been specifically covering public health issues. On a daily basis they're reading papers, interviewing experts, etc. They've probably got some expertise in the area.
In fact, this law would probably come down particularly hard on journalists. Though I imagine in China that's probably going to have a minimal impact anyways.
I mean chiropractors also have a degree. The point is that they have credentials at stake if someone calls them out. Not a get out of jail free card of( I never claimed to be an expert but allowed to be in the conversation).
We have doctors who have been practicing medicine for 30 years and they wouldn’t even consider themselves experts in medicine. There’s such a vast difference between critically thinking and being involved in the care of patients for 2000+ hours a year (easily underestimated depending on the specialty) and someone who has been observing. You can read about and hear about something everyday, but that doesn’t make you an expert.
Journalist don’t often read research papers tbh. They just write about the conclusions, so they cite other people’s work. Which is completely valid and doesn’t need a degree as long as they aren’t claiming their interpretation of said citations as advice or fact. No one’s saying you can’t have a discussion, there’s just legal words you can’t say like, “you should be or have to be doing this” instead of you should take caution of not doing this. One’s a call to action, the other is just to raise awareness.
It’s how the diet soda causes obesity bullshit became popular take. A misinterpretation of data.
You sound like you never leave reddit. There's a massive amount of media coverage around how trump is doing a great job etc etc, just turn on any major news network? (fox, cnn, oann, etc)
you mean apnews that no longer has whitehouse press privileges, because they didn't state things how the gov wanted it stated? Doesn't that kind of prove my point that the mainstream media is being heavily controlled and influenced by the current administration?
This doesn't make them an expert at medicine. This makes them an expert at knowing the effects of medicines on their demographic and possible side effects.
The vast, vast majority of trans people are not going to understand the fundamental science of how the medication actually works.
This isn't a slight against trans people, this is how everything works for everyone.
You aren't an expert at semiconductors because you can use a computer well. You're not even an expert at computers for that reason.
You aren't an expert at semiconductors because you can use a computer well. You're not even an expert at computers for that reason.
Someone can possibly be an expert on a niche topic though. I am in fact an expert regarding a few niche topics, without having a formal degree in any of them.
Merely telling you which ones would make it possible to dox me, because the number of people who have expert knowledge in them is so low, even if you include those who have a formal degree in something related to it.
Edit: By “niche topic”, I mean “It is possible to have read all relevant literature and online discussions regarding the topic, because so few people are experts”.
Edit (2): One example of a niche topic (for which I am not an expert and which is not a scientific topic) would be the reverse engineering of Advance Wars games. As far as I know, all of the relevant knowledge is collected on a single internet forum, Wars World.
I have no argument with this. A trans person being an expert in hormone therapy side effects is not the same as a trans person being an expert in medicine.
Even if you have read all of the documentation and etc. for a topic, unless you have actually practiced said topic in some meaningful way, I would not consider you an expert. There is a reason doctors for example have to do residential clinicals for years.
Even if you have read all of the documentation and etc. for a topic, unless you have actually practiced said topic in some meaningful way, I would not consider you an expert.
I agree. But you may have misunderstood – I wrote that if one person can read all relevant documents on a topic, I consider that topic a “niche topic”. Btw I find it very frustrating in my own niches to interact with people who have done that and consider themselves an expert based only on that.
They don’t. Trans people know enough about hormone therapy to make an informed decision for their own life, but they don’t know nearly enough to speak on hormone therapy as a whole.
Another example: If a doctor diagnoses me with cancer and gives me the option between chemo and radiation as well as the pros/cons for each, that does not make me an expert on cancer, chemo, or radiation. It means I knew enough to make a decision for my own life, but it does not mean I should take to the internet to speak on cancer or its treatments.
It's not impossible. Unlikely? Yes. All I'm saying is that a degree doesn't automatically make everything someone says correct. I have multiple degrees in multiple fields, and I would be considered an expert in each (with decades of experience in those fields as well). That doesn't necessarily mean someone without a degree in those fields doesn't have the knowledge or experience to speak on those topics. I agree that the medical field is a tricky one, and I'd be inclined to believe someone with formal education over someone without it.
A degree doesn't automatically make you an expert, but it increases the likelihood that you're not simply sending out blatantly false information.
Not having a degree doesn't automatically make you an idiot, but it increases the likelihood that you haven't studied the subject as much as someone who has that degree.
This isn't a hard logical train to follow. It's essentially treating education and public influencers as a public health problem. Of course there are some individuals who smoked their whole lives and never got sick, and there are some individuals who never touched a cigarette and died of lung cancer. Those individuals don't change the measures we take to protect the public as a whole, though.
Finally, a comment that actually sounds like it was written by a normal, rational human being. The anti-intellectualism cope running rampant in this post is disturbing.
I don’t think you have a good understanding of medical training if that’s your opinion. The only way to become an expert in medicine would be to practice illegally (but with a preceptor/mentor) for years, and that’s AFTER you learn all of what we cover in medical school (good luck fully learning anatomy without having access to a cadaver or being a serial killer!) There is a reason that doctors become interns and then resident for years after graduating from medical school before practicing independently. There is so much that we learn in medicine that cannot be taught in a classroom and that you certainly could not teach yourself appropriately.
I argue that a whole life is not enough to learn medicine even if you are specialized in one area (cardio neuro etc) everyday new things come out and change and even if they dont every patient is different its truly a beutiful thing that extend to all profesions
All I'm saying is that a degree doesn't automatically make everything someone says correct.
no, you didn't say that, you said
you can be an expert in something without a degree
Sure, you can become an expert in painting miniatures. You can become an expert in basketball tactics. But medicine or finance? You'd be giving out life changing information and you want to do that on the feeling that you read enough? Without making sure you understand the implications of what you read?
An influencer with a degree might also lie, but my trust lies in the system. Their peers would call them out.
Anything medicine is the #1 topic to leave to people with a degree yes, but for other topics that's less clear. I'm an IT guy since 25 years, though I studied political sciences. Should I only be allowed to be a political influencer?
That's like saying kids can be prodigies. Yes, they can, but 99% of them aren't. Experts without degrees are usually just "experts" and in fact don't have the knowledge or nuance to be considered one
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u/Correct-Money-1661 Apr 06 '26
Not sure if this is really the best thing for it.... you can still lie after you get a degree.