I'm a professional philosopher, but not one who thinks that my training or credentials gives me any special status or authority. Philosophers, as such, have no factual or evaluative expertise. Our training is in conceptual analysis. I have long said that society doesn't need more philosophers. What it needs is more philosophically minded lawyers, doctors, accountants, engineers, &c. My aim as a teacher of philosophy is to inculcate critical-thinking skills in my students. It is not to indoctrinate them and it is certainly not to get them to give up beliefs or values that they had before studying philosophy. Philosophy is as likely to provide a basis for traditional beliefs and values as it is to supplant those beliefs or values.
I therefore agree with Marco Rubio when he says that we need more welders than philosophers. Philosophers will not like hearing this, obviously, but that's because they're self-interested. (Philosophers have all the vices of people generally, plus some of their own.) Some philosophers think they should be philosopher-kings. This is risible. I would rather be ruled by a randomly selected person than by a professional philosopher.
