From a reader:
Gaaaaahhhhh…!
This makes me crazy.
The Surgeon General is *not* a general. The Attorney General is *not* a general (I used to pull my hair, of which I have little to spare, when I heard the phrase “General Reno” during the Clinton administration, and I felt no better when I heard “General Ashcroft” (and even worse when I heard “General Gonzales”)). I know that it’s strange in English, but “General” is the *adjective*, not the noun.
Please. Just say “Surgeon General Gupta.” Though at least for now, you should say “Surgeon General-Nominee Gupta…”
Mea maxima culpa.
Update: Here’s the 411. The surgeon general is a commissioned officer.