Introduction
Expertise is a problem for Americans. Particularly academic expertise; and particularly in public matters. Expertise is considered elitist, and is suspect for that reason, but, more fundamentally, expertise is understood to serve other masters, masters other than the people. Expertise is viewed as un-democratic. One does want one's doctor to be an expert in the disease for which she is treating you, but one does not want political matters to be decided by experts. Expertise in law falls between these two. One does want experts in DNA analysis to be available in court cases, for the most part, unless it costs the public too much or is too focused on the exoneration of criminals, but the prejudice is that most issues of fact in the courts in the United States are best not decided by experts. There is an interesting, perhaps ironic, convergence here between popular prejudice and the conclusions of sociologists of knowledge.
This essay will consider how this US political a...