kendall, as one of my profs once said to me, "Just because there'e a little extra curl in the tail doesn't necessarily mean there's any more pork up front."

Degrees can be had by the bushel. You can buy them outright. You can get them because of your Daddy' name. You can attend Tijuana Tech or you can just print your own. I'll repeat: APPEAL TO AUTHORITY IS A FALLACY. Google informal fallacies if you don't believe me (that, in itself is a form of "appeal to authority"). In fact, that's something that all posters should do. Rules of logic are rules of REASON. Wouldn't you agree that we should all be reasonable? If you present a reasonable argument then REASON carries the day, not academic letters that a mutual admiration society may give to each other.

On the other side of the coin, I am not saying that academic credentials are worthless. I happen to have a couple myself. While they indicate that you have successfully completed a course of study and have reached a prescribed level of competency it does not necessarily mean that all you say is golden.

Many well educated people have differences of opinion and they can support their views many logical ways. Intelligent discussion demands CONSIDERED opinions. Let the weight of your words and the force of your logic carry your argument.