So Called, Here’s the Message

I happen to be on a somewhat first name basis with General Tso. Hear me out. In Chinese culture, a person’s first name (given name) is last and his or her surname first. Most people outside of immediate family call a person by his or her surname.

I call the General somewhat often, but he never calls me. I figure that between war and chicken, he is a busy man. So, imagine how excited I get when I hear Tso called, and the inevitable letdown I feel when I learn that he in fact did not call. If I wish to contact him in the near future, I’ll have to go back to the all-you-can-eat place. No harm, no fowl (see what I did there?)

Unfortunately, I hear that phrase so often that I have to roll my eyes.

If you have not guessed by now, I’m being a bit facetious in talking about a savory, sodium-filled Chinese delicacy, when I am really referring to a social media trend of trying to discredit someone by dismissing his or her profession.

This is common in political discourse, but it has spilled out into other arenas as well. In this social media climate, it seems as though respect is totally arbitrary and only to be awarded should the person in question agree with your deeply held beliefs.

You’ve heard it before. “The so-called doctor is lying.” “This so-called journalist is making up fake news (cough, hiccup)!”

When did society begin to attach useless labels to things they disagree with? Calling someone ‘so-called’ does not change that person’s profession or minimalize his or her accomplishments. Indeed, the only person being discredited is the phrase’s user, who thinks he is being edgy with a phrase he heard someone else say in a non-ironic sense.

If that is ok now, then where does it end? That ‘so-called’ duck I see out my ‘so-called’ window, is swimming in the ‘so-called’ pond. That might sound ridiculous, but that’s the point. Attaching ‘so-called’ to anything real is ridiculous.

Imagine what would happen if I limped into a hospital with a broken leg and asked to see a ‘so-called’ doctor. A kind receptionist might check me in regardless of my misuse, but if I were that receptionist, I’d send me to Netflix Medical Center, where there are a lot of so-called doctors who could help me out. They wouldn’t fix my leg, but I’d be relatively comfortable waiting for the so-called prescription.

Does that extend to other professions as well? Would the ‘so-called’ janitor refuse to clean my cubicle if I tried to discredit her? Or would that ‘so-called’ cashier scan my items and check me out if I tried to call him an idiot?

This all sounds silly because it is. Attaching the ‘so-called’ to the profession does not take away the profession. That news anchor you don’t like, is an actual journalist, regardless of how you feel about her reporting. The doctor you bash went to medical school for the right to be called a real doctor who can treat real ailments—except for the alleged superiority of the ‘so-called’ user.

Similarly, I am an actual writer, because I sit down, place my hands on my keyboard, and relentlessly hammer away to bring my thoughts to the internet. If you call me ‘so-called’ it wouldn’t hurt my feelings. Hell, if you proclaim it loudly enough and to enough people, you might actually help me increase my readership. I could never be so lucky as to have my books banned, so the least I can do is have someone important refer to me as “so-called” to boost my career.

Then again, maybe this is just another phrase that needs to die. You not liking me does not diminish my work, although evidence suggests I am a somewhat likeable guy. Perhaps, then, you not liking me is your fault. Yes, I mean you, the ‘so-called’ reader. Are you reading these words, or are you not? Me even asking that question proves that you are.

So-called philosopher Socrates once warned that “It is best and easiest not to discredit others but to prepare oneself to be as good as possible.” If that person truly deserves to be discredited, your better work, not your accusatory words, will do a fine job. If you truly believe someone is wrong, it is up to you to prove it, because using ‘so-called’ convinces no one.