There is no indication that Rossi's degree isn't perfectly legitimate for the time and place granted. Other than, of course, your imagination.
Your problem is that you want so badly to believe that Rossi is genuine that you're willing to overlook just about anything that contradicts that belief.
So what if the Italians changed their laws specifying requirements for a degree? It's highly unlikely that such changes were very substantial as far as actual work required for a given degree. I especially doubt that the requirements for PhDs were made MORE strict than when Rossi supposedly attended university.
It also doesn't help your case to quote an Italian as saying that until 1986, the highest degree offered was a Master's. That is, in effect, saying that it was impossible for Rossi to even get a doctorate.
Last, I will reiterate that the degree Rossi claims to have earned from the U of Milan, the "Dottore Magistrale in Filosofia", is a Master's degree in Philosophy. It not only is not a doctorate, it isn't even a science degree. I don't know about you, but I've never dealt with philosophers in the lab. It appears to me that the specific degree name was selected so as to convey the impression that Rossi has a level of education that he does not; the Italian words for "Master's degree in Philosophy" sure do look like the English words "Doctor of Philosophy". Too bad (for Rossi) that we have Google and can check these things out.
You might want to read about that before getting too terribly excited one way or the other.
Wiki says that this often confuses foreigners.
Horse manure.
"So what if the Italians changed their laws specifying requirements for a degree? It's highly unlikely that such changes were very substantial as far as actual work required for a given degree. I especially doubt that the requirements for PhDs were made MORE strict than when Rossi supposedly attended university."
If you had bothered to do a bit of work, you would have found out that the changes were quite substantial. My impression was that a new degree was added that WAS the equivalent of a US doctorate.
"It also doesn't help your case to quote an Italian as saying that until 1986, the highest degree offered was a Master's. That is, in effect, saying that it was impossible for Rossi to even get a doctorate."
The Italian quote said that the degree was "dottore", which at that time was probably, in effort, EQUIVALENT to a US Masters degree, not that it was a Master's degree. European and American degree levels are NOT equivalent.
Again, you are assuming things without checking.
"Last, I will reiterate that the degree Rossi claims to have earned from the U of Milan, the "Dottore Magistrale in Filosofia", is a Master's degree in Philosophy. It not only is not a doctorate, it isn't even a science degree."
My degree says "Doctor of Philosophy". Does that make me a philsopher?? I certainly took a whole bunch of science classes. Without knowing what course work was taken, neither you nor I can know precisely what the overall background in science Rossi gained from his university work was. At "liberal arts" type universities, a degree can vary substantially between people even though the final title on the diploma says the same degree level was attained.
"I don't know about you, but I've never dealt with philosophers in the lab. It appears to me that the specific degree name was selected so as to convey the impression that Rossi has a level of education that he does not; the Italian words for "Master's degree in Philosophy" sure do look like the English words "Doctor of Philosophy". Too bad (for Rossi) that we have Google and can check these things out.
Maybe you should actually spend MORE time on Google. An actual "Masters degree in Philosophy" transates as "Laurea in Filosofia". "Doctors degree in Philosophy" translates precisely as "Dottore in Filosofia". Your assumptions are once again in error.
You must really have thunder thighs, as you spend so much time jumping to conclusions.