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December 3, 2024

Talbot Spy

Nonpartisan Education-based News for Talbot County Community

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Is real disruption likely? By Al Sikes

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Donald J Trump knows and is moving fast.  He understands power’s cycles and the underlying conditions that gain or lose momentum. Yet, even the most insightful cannot account for what can’t be predicted and its influence on the rise and fall of political power. But, lets take a look at what we do know.

As our new President quickly assembles his senior leadership, coalitions of convenience are being shaped. And the quantity of “strange bedfellows” will exceed Washington’s supply of hotel rooms. Government employees might be staying away from their work stations but those with government privileges to be defended, they will be thick at the hotel bars.

People and their organizations, business, and not-for-profits alike, do not give up benefits without a fight. And the United States federal government is obese with allocations, set-asides, tax advantages, regulatory benefits, direct and indirect grants, and more. Most of us are affected.

Each of these government advantages have their constituencies and at the risk of overstatement Members of Congress who are politically indebted.  Members do not want their military base closed, or their local employer to lose its tax credits or for that matter any changes that cost their District money.

As I think about the President-Elect, the most interesting and potentially beneficial dimension is disruption. We read about the differences between Trump and Biden on Ukraine or NATO or North Korea and those will play out. But internationally, the US is one of many. Stronger, but its strength is inevitably diluted as some level of cooperation is not discretionary.

Domestically the White House has immense advantages. Over time the Executive Branch of government has accrued power. The power has come from weaknesses in the representative branch, the Congress. Presidents increasingly issue Executive Orders and if the President’s party controls the Congress few will be blocked and it takes Court challenges a long time to reach closure.

Enter Elon Musk on a wave of extraordinary new technology; technology that is already changing the face of much of what we do. Technology that makes the previously unthinkable thinkable. As I write it appears that the President-Elect is prepared to cede power to Musk and why not.

I chaired the Federal Communications Commission when President George H W Bush was President. He was preoccupied with generational developments in the Soviet Union and deservedly spent much of his time on foreign policy. And you might recall that President Bush assembled the coalition that kicked the Iraqis out of Kuwait.

When it came to domestic policy most agency heads did not feel shadowed by the White House. If President-Elect Trump wants to make generational changes in the bureaucracy, putting Musk in charge of a Commission to draft Presidential Executive Orders to reform the government is a deft move. There will certainly be conflicts and especially with Congressional backers of one benefit or another, but if the Trump/Musk collaboration persists it will be initially traumatic but eventually might help heal our gaping wound, the budget gap.

I left Washington for New York in 1993 and became immersed in the new economy—the digital one. In those early years our venture capital investments funded disruption (first investment—Netscape) and the disruption put extraordinary pressure on what we started calling legacy media. Newspaper, magazine, and broadcast media all declined and some precipitously. Much of government is controlled by legacy systems.

The disruption that Trump/Musk promise will necessarily be different. If it is carried out effectively, it will reduce the central government’s workforce and promote efficiency without bankruptcies. Most of the bloated organizations are statutorily authorized making dissolution of whole agencies virtually impossible. Hopefully Congress will help by repealing statutory status but don’t count on it.

Trying to stay out of the weeds, I’ll close with this observation. While the President-Elect has played fast and loose with many traditional Republican positions, tax reduction remains a central promise. If this disruptive period fails to change the trajectory on budget deficits, it will be a failure. And if government revenues do not change, then the numbers on the financial statements will have moved around but the net effect will simply be a different line-up of winners and losers. The cynics hanging around the hotel bars are betting on that outcome. History will only honor the opposite.

Al Sikes is the former Chair of the Federal Communications Commission under George H.W. Bush. Al writes on themes from his book, Culture Leads Leaders Follow published by Koehler Books. 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Our Country’s Moral fiber – no stitch in time this time by Maria Grant

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Recent Gallup Polls indicate that 54 percent of those polled believe that the state of moral values in the U.S. is poor. And 83 percent of those polled believe that moral values in the U.S. are getting worse. The most common response as to why this is so is consideration of others. Other reasons include lack of religion, racism, sense of entitlement, and lack of solid family structure. Cable news and social media also focus much more on negative news—murders, break-ins, racial slurs, and altercations, also contributing to a sense of moral decline. 

In his inaugural address of 1861, Abraham Lincoln said, “The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely, they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” Ronald Reagan said, “America is a shining city upon a hill whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere.” 

Today, I see fewer better angels circling the U.S. And our light shines much dimmer now. 

In days gone by, cabinet nominees failed to be confirmed by the Senate or withdrew their nominations for what in today’s world would be considered minor infractions.

 Zoe Baird, Clinton’s nominee for Attorney General, withdrew her nomination because it became known that she hired an undocumented worker in her household. 

Kimba Wood, Clinton’s second nominee for Attorney General also hired an undocumented worker but she did so before it became illegal. Even so, she withdrew her nomination. 

Linda Chavez, George Bush’s nomination for Secretary of Labor, withdrew her nomination because it became known that she gave money to an undocumented worker who lived in her household. (There is some irony here as the President-Elect has employed numerous undocumented workers in New York City, Westminster, Philadelphia, Westchester County and Jupiter, FL. For six months, undocumented Polish workers cleared the ground where the eventual Trump Tower would be erected.) 

Tom Daschle, Obama’s nominee for Health and Human Services, withdrew his nomination over $140,000 worth of unpaid taxes. (The President-Elect’s nominee for U.S. Ambassador to France, Charles Kushner, Ivanka’s husband’s father, pled guilty to 18 counts of illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, and witness tampering, was sentenced to two years in prison, and was pardoned by Trump in 2020.)

Al Franken resigned as senator of Minnesota because when he was a comedian a woman accused him of groping her while a photograph was taken. 

In today’s world, nominees and even the President-Elect can have felony convictions, sexual assault charges, conflicts of interest, drug addiction and conspiracy theories galore, and Americans don’t blink an eye. If a presidential appointee can’t get the appropriate level of security clearance, the president can simply override the necessity for having one and hire the person anyway. 

So why have our standards dropped so low? Why is America now OK with seriously flawed nominees with questionable backgrounds and ethics? 

Some sociologists attribute this laxness in standards to the belief that for many Americans political expediency trumps personal integrity. So, for example, if your main priority is the price of eggs and a secure border, you are willing to settle for less honorable politicians. 

Some scholars attribute the growing lack of civility in today’s politics to three occurrences: the gerrymandering of state and congressional districts which creates more “safe” constituencies for each party; the primary voting system that bases candidate selection on the participation of the most extreme partisans; and the campaign finance laws that redirect large campaign funds to extreme political interest groups. These three changes in governance have led to ever increasing polarization of the parties and consequently less civility. 

In an editorial for The New York Times, Thomas Friedman wrote about how American politicians no longer feel shame for committing misdeeds. The days when politicians apologize for wrongdoings, do penance, and often resign their posts are long gone. (Matt Gaetz resigned from the House of Representatives only because he thought he would be the next Attorney General and then withdrew that nomination which surprisingly was a bridge too far for a few Republicans.)

I know I will be beset by naysayers, but I am embarrassed by my country today. And I’m disgusted by the mean-spirited and downright cruel posts I saw on Thanksgiving Day. I long for the days when we treated our political adversaries with dignity and respect on both sides of the aisle. I want integrity and honesty always to be front and center. I want to applaud acts of kindness. I want all of us to commit to making the world a better, safer, cleaner, more welcoming, and inclusive place to live. I want us to encourage our children and family and friends to show compassion and empathy. These qualities are not weaknesses. They are strengths to be encouraged and celebrated. 

Sowing more division and seeking retribution have never been the answers. Searching for common ground is a first step in getting back to the basics of true civil discourse. It starts by finding small areas of agreement, collaborating on solutions to problems, and building upon progress made. (I saw this premise in action when I was the Human Resources Director for the largest peacebuilding nonprofit Search for Common Ground.)

My hope is that as a country we can once more be seen as “better angels” whose “beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere.” I fear it will be a long time coming.

Maria Grant was principal-in-charge of the federal human capital practice of an international consulting firm. While on the Eastern Shore, she focuses on writing, reading, music, and nature.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Black and White By Jamie Kirkptrick

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There’s not much that’s just black and white in the world these days. Everything is either nuanced shades of gray, or, more likely, layer upon layer of color, bright or muted, shiny or subtle. Simplicity is out, complexity is in, and for some people—people like me—that can pose a problem. You see, I like to keep things simple, straightforward. Give me two options, and I’ll choose one without much difficulty. But if you give me three, four, or more options, the variables start to kick in, and then just watch me wallow in the muck of indecision.

The holidays don’t help, especially in a year when Thanksgiving falls late on the calendar and suddenly, we’re all in a pre-Christmas panic. Just at that moment in the year when the days are drained of color and we should all be taking a long winter’s nap, suddenly, we’re thrust into a gathering storm of decorating and shopping and merry-making that makes my head spin. Makes me wonder…

…Maybe in some past life, I was a Shaker. The Shakers were (and in one small village in Maine, still are) a Protestant Christian sect that originated in England in mid-1700s. Shakers believe in a second coming of Christ, and on creating a working heaven here on earth. They practice temporal and spiritual simplicity, pacifism, and perfection in all aspects of life. We know the Shakers best through their music, through one song in particular, “Simple Gifts:”

 

Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free,

‘Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain’d,

To bow and to bend we will not be asham’d,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come round right.

A core tenet of Shaker belief is that earthly satisfaction can not be obtained through the acquisition of power or wealth. Rather, true satisfaction can only be obtained through humility and freedom from worldly goods. Try selling that notion to the marketing gurus who came up with Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday.

Shakers are celibate; they do not marry. Although Shakers do believe in gender equality, they must rely on converts to populate their dwindling numbers. To the best of my knowledge, the tiny village of Sabbathday Lake, Maine is the last surviving Shaker community, a sad testament to the demise of true simplicity in today’s culture.

But back to black and white and all the subtle shades of gray in between. As much as I love color photography, there is an austere beauty in a world reduced to two tones. Color can dazzle me, but black and white images stimulate my curiosity and my imagination. I truly believe I see more by seeing less.

As we rush headlong into the December holidays, I’m going to try my best to see more by seeing less. I’m going to try and keep things simple. I’m sure I’ll stumble, but maybe, just maybe, in some unexpected, quiet moment, I’ll find myself in a place just right.

I’ll be right back.

 

Jamie Kirkpatrick is a writer and photographer who lives in Chestertown. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Washington College Alumni Magazine, and American Cowboy Magazine. His new novel, “The Tales of Bismuth; Dispatches from Palestine, 1945-1948” explores the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is available on Amazon.

 

 

 

 

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Was the 2024 presidential election a realignment election? By David Reel

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Following the 2024 presidential election, some political observers have suggested this election was a realignment election that bodes well for Republican presidential candidates and other Republican candidates going forward.

Not so fast.

Any meaningful discussion on that suggestion must include a review of research done by political scientist V.O. Key, a preeminent scholar on American elections and voting behavior.

Key’s criteria for a realignment election includes shifts in party attachment that extends over several presidential elections and appear to be independent of the peculiar factors that influenced the vote at individual elections.

Using Key’s criteria, a determination if the 2024 presidential election marks the start of a political realignment cannot be made yet. It may be eventually but only if the results of future consecutive elections replicate the results of the 2024 presidential cycle elections.

For now, we know the 2024 presidential election was a performance evaluation decision on President Joe Biden’s policies and priorities. After Vice President Kamala Harris replaced Biden on the ballot, the election became an opportunity to gauge voter approval on their expectations on policies and priorities in a Harris administration.

We also now know the Harris campaign failed to convince a majority of voters that her administration would be different from the Biden administration. Nothing more, nothing less.

2024 also provided voters with performance evaluation decisions for three long term incumbent Democratic U.S. Senators from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Montana. All three lost in their reelection bids. In West Virginia, a Republican candidate was elected to replace a Democratic incumbent senator who retired in anticipation of losing reelection.

Eventually, the 2024 presidential and U.S. Senate elections may become viewed as the first in a series of elections that taken together, are true realignment elections. The next election cycles that will help answer the realignment question will be the 2026 Congressional mid-term elections and the 2028 presidential election (one unlikely to have an incumbent candidate).

Which party will do well going forward will be determined in large part to who responds best to key unanswered questions as well as to lessons learned from the 2024 presidential election.

For the Republican Party, key unanswered questions from 2024 include:

Can they maintain support from the influential and demanding MAGA wing of the party?
Some MAGA Republicans are already angry over reports that four Republican Senators opposed Matt Gaetz’s nomination for Attorney General (now withdrawn at Gaetz’s request).

More importantly, can the Republican Party retain blocs of historically Democratic voters who gave higher levels of support to Trump in 2024 than he received from them in 2016 and 2020. That largely unexpected outcome included to varying degrees, more support for Donald Trump and other down ballot Republican candidates from young Black male voters, Hispanic/Latino voters, young male voters, working class voters, and urban voters.

For the Democratic Party, key unanswered questions from 2024 include:

Can they maintain support from the influential and demanding progressive wing of the party?
Already, some progressive Democrats are resisting any effort to pivot to more centrist positions on issues such as immigration restrictions, immigration deportations, deficit spending, and aid to Israel.

More importantly, can the Democratic Party regain blocs of historically Democratic voters who gave lower than anticipated support for Kamala Harris?

All things considered, I suggest THE most important avenues to future election success for both parties are candidates who do the best job of executing the following campaign strategies.

LISTEN INTENTLY TO THE VOTERS
Remember that listening is more than waiting for your turn to talk.
Remember to seek first to understand, then seek to be understood.

RESPECT WHAT VOTERS ARE SAYING, WHETHER OR NOT YOU AGREE WITH THEM
Meet them where they are, not where you think they should be.

ACCEPT VOTER MESSAGE DEVELOPMENT COUNSEL FROM MEDIA GURU FRANK LUNZ
“It’s not what you say or write, it is what people hear or read. You can have the best message in the world, but the person on the receiving end will always understand it through the prism of their own emotions, preconceptions, prejudices, and preexisting beliefs. Get your audience to visualize… imagine. Only when people can see a better future will they consider a change.”

HAVE CONFIDENCE YOUR PARTY CAN DELIVER MEASURABLE RESULTS ON CAMPAIGN PROMISES
There is always another election cycle when voters can exercise their right to vote against candidates they perceive to be unresponsive to their views on what matters most to them.

With regard to the question of whether the 2024 presidential election was the first in a series of elections that will result in a political realignment that bodes well for Republican presidential candidates as well as other Republican candidates long term, the answers are:

To be determined.

Time will tell.

David Reel is a public affairs and public relations consultant who lives in Easton.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Delmarva Review: Leitmotif by Rita Plush

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Editor’s Note: “Leitmotif” was first published in Volume 16 of the Delmarva Review in 2023 and was selected to be featured in the new anthology, The Best of Delmarva Review.

Author’s Note: My daughter and I had breast cancer at the same time. Hers was more severe than mine and she didn’t survive. Writing, putting things on paper always helps me understand how I feel about something. “Leitmotif” did that for me.

Leitmotif

DURING A MOMENT of afternoon delight my husband discovered a lump in my breast. After an all-clear mammo two months prior—so much for regular screening. Yet even with a lumpectomy that left my boob scarred and mangled, he still thought I was sexy. 

I waltzed—maybe two-stepped— through twenty-five rounds of radiation and continued working throughout. A month later, my arm swelled to twice its normal size. Lymphedema. A chronic condition that blocks the body’s liquid flow. Per protocol, I donned a compression sleeve and glove and religiously massaged and exercised my puffed-up appendage. Within months, no swelling. This disease can return at any time but since my surgery nine years ago, it has not.

I have been lucky on all fronts. A little humor there. But I need it; if I don’t laugh, I’ll cry. 

About my daughter. 

A year or so before my cancer, Leslie, not yet 50, engaged to be married, suffered a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction, her fiancé by her side every step of the way. She too was lucky in love. But not in cancer. 

From the get-go her numbers weren’t good. Out went her uterus to prevent the disease from spreading to there. She put herself on an exercise and healthful eating regime; she took prescribed drugs, endured infusions. For six years, cancer threw in bowel, kidney, and heart problems. Her hair went, but not her will. She left herself open to trials like a mouse in a lab. 

We would talk about her cancer, her various treatments, her worries—one of which was burdening me with her illness. What is a mother for if not to be burdened by her child’s distress? My cancer? I didn’t talk about it in anything more than a cursory way. There wasn’t much to say. I’d had my surgery and whatever action was called for; I was well. 

Time has a way of filling in the blanks, of opening the past to a wider lens. Maybe it was because I was in such good health and she was challenged every day with some new catastrophe, that I felt guilty bringing it up. In hospital rooms of drips and pumps and monitors beeping, I stayed strong for her and gave of myself. Did I say all the right things? There’s a funny! Not on your life! There were times I asked too many questions about her treatment: “When I want you to know, you’ll know!” Other times, not enough: “Don’t you care?!” So there’s that. 

Folks talk about “going forward” and “moving on” after a great loss, as if they got themselves a better job, or found a new love after a breakup. Me? Did the sun rise in the morning and set before dusk? The very cosmos might have rearranged itself and the opposite may have been true. I was frozen, benumbed with grief. I could not think. I could not feel. A part of me, a big part, had died with her. There! I said the d word! “Passed on,” folks like to say. It sounds less final than “died.” Has a more graceful ring to it, don’t you think? As if she had gently floated off to some ever-lovely world, free of pain and disease. Died is so… dead!— one year now. (Pfft, and she was gone, as with the wave of a magician’s wand.) 

I see my friends now. I’m knitting again. The other day I rolled out my yoga mat. I’m a phone friend to a shut-in; like clockwork, five on Friday, I call her, and we chat for an hour. Just this morning an idea for a short story popped up. I may even take in a movie this afternoon. Leslie loved the movies. Maybe I’ll give her… No, I won’t give her a call, will I? (Lapses of memory, I have them now and again.) But I keep on. And Leslie, my precious child, her loving smile, and bulletproof spirit, her “Tell me everything!” is keeping right along with me. A life-giving undersong to my each and every day. 

♦ 

Rita Plush (New York) is the author of two novels, Lily Steps Out and Feminine Products, and a short story collection, Alterations. She is the book reviewer for Fire Island News and has been a guest on The Author’s Corner on Public Radio. Her stories and essays have appeared in Alaska Quarterly Review, MacGuffin, The Iconoclast, The Sun, Kveller, Jewish Week, Broadkill Review, Backchannels, LochRaven, Avalon Literary Review, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and Sanctuary Magazine. She is from Queens, New York. Website: www.ritaplush.com.

The Delmarva Review has been published annually from St. Michaels, Maryland for sixteen years. Its editors selected the most compelling new poetry. creative nonfiction, and short stories from thousands of submissions nationwide (and beyond) for publication in print and electronic editions. At a time when many commercial and literary magazines have closed their doors or reduced literary content, the review has stood out to help fill the void in print. Selection has always been based on writing quality. Almost half of the writers have come from the greater Chesapeake-Delmarva region.  As an independent literary publication, the review has never charged writers a reading or publishing fee. The Delmarva Review is available worldwide from all major online booksellers. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, support comes from tax-deductible contributions and a grant from Talbot Arts with funds from the Maryland State Arts Council. Website: www.DelmarvaReview.org.

 

 

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

The tyranny of dinner by Angela Rieck

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Years ago, I was congratulating a mother whose youngest child had graduated from high school with honors. She was gracious, and said that she was looking forward to the end of the “tyranny of dinner.” 

I love that phrase.

But we have learned that the tyranny of dinner didn’t necessarily end when the children leave. Many of my friends report that they still feel, the old “what’s for dinner” approaching around 2 p.m. Fortunately, we are blessed with a number of different restaurants and fast-food chains that can satisfy those who do not want to prepare dinner…but it remains the same…what to do about dinner?

One would think that being retired means that it is easier, but unless there is someone in the family that has taken on cooking as their retirement challenge, the “what’s for dinner” challenge still looms. 

One of the few advantages to being single is that I do not have to worry about what is for dinner. I eat when I want to, and I have found that I tend to eat my large meal at lunchtime. 

Research has shown that it is healthier to eat early, especially for those of us who are watching our weight. A 2022 study found that people who ate dinner around 5 PM burned more calories than those who ate later. Eating later also increased the chances of obesity. Among dieters who were taking in the same caloric intake, they found that those who consumed their calories earlier lost 2 ½ times more weight than those who consumed the bulk of their calories after 5 pm. Early eating is associated with less heartburn and better sleeping.

But what you eat is more important than when you eat. And that gets back to the tyranny of dinner. 

I looked up ways to avoid the tyranny of dinner and all recommended planning. One writer planned her meals for a month, now that is a planner! Another suggestion was to make the meals a week in advance, to be consumed later. 

The few times that I planned ahead (such as starting a crock pot), it felt good to go home knowing that I had answered the question “what’s for dinner.” When I started a crockpot in the morning, I would come home to comforting smells of stew waiting to be served. 

Another way of looking at this is that the tyranny of dinner is a reminder of how blessed we are. We have options and do not have to worry about going to bed hungry (unless we choose to).

So, when the annoying “what’s for dinner” arises, maybe we should take a breath and remind ourselves how lucky we are to be able ask that question.

Angela Rieck, a Caroline County native, received her PhD in Mathematical Psychology from the University of Maryland and worked as a scientist at Bell Labs, and other high-tech companies in New Jersey before retiring as a corporate executive. Angela and her dogs divide their time between St Michaels and Key West Florida. Her daughter lives and works in New York City.

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I’m thankful for Lucca by J.E. Dean

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Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and I am thankful for a lot of things. I will get up early, send Thanksgiving Day greetings to several family members and good friends and get ready to celebrate this very special American holiday with family and with a 13-year-old Goldendoodle named Lucca.

When I sit down for dinner tomorrow, Lucca will be with me, sitting patiently at my side, hoping that I sneak her a piece of turkey. She knows I won’t do so immediately, but that eventually I will give in and offer her a small piece of turkey. Then she will saunter over to my wife where Lucca will repeat the drill. After dinner, Lucca will retreat to her favorite rug where she will listen to the conversation until she is ready to take an evening stroll and check out the neighborhood. I am thankful for Lucca. She is a family member and has earned the right to join our Thanksgiving dinner.

Lucca has been much loved since she first joined the family 13 years ago. She arrived as a puppy, an energetic 13-pound dog that was gentle from day one. She loves attention, even from complete strangers. Even at age 13, Lucca is occasionally stopped on walks by passers-by and told that she is beautiful. On occasion, Lucca responds by giving “kisses,” which are usually, but not always, welcomed.

Lucca demonstrates love and loyalty in the best possible ways. She senses If I have had a bad day and will lay down at my feet or next to my chair. She will patiently wait for me to rise and take her on a walk, immediately becoming excited and usually grabbing one of her many toys to play a Goldendoodle version of catch.

Like every Goldendoodle I have met, Lucca has a powerful nose and uses it. Walks are expeditions of discovery. She sniffs everything. When she detects the sign of another dog (you know what that sign is), she leaves her own sign for the other dog to discover on her own walk. A friend of mine who is a self-identified “dog-expert” told me that sniffing is one way that dogs communicate with each other.

Over the years, Lucca has had many adventures. Most of those have involved her running away. One might argue that we failed to train Lucca, but I disagree. Doodles of all types seem to be wanderers. She knows there is a world of scents waiting to be discovered and has seized every chance she has to seek them.

Some of Lucca’s adventures have been something less than fun for her masters. On a visit to Florida, she wandered into a pond and attracted a (fortunately) juvenile alligator that attached itself to her tail. Lucca shook off the alligator and was rescued by a neighbor who delivered her back to us for an emergency trip to the vet. (I am thankful this Thanksgiving that so far this year there have been no alligator incidents.)

Lucca also once saved my life one night when I became very seriously ill and passed out on the floor. I was alone in the house. Lucca used her tongue to wake me up. I called the skilled and resolute EMT team at the Oxford Fire Department who took me to the hospital.

Now that Lucca is 13, I know that this may be her last Thanksgiving. Despite having the best possible veterinarian, arthritis and other ailments are catching up with her. By this time next year, I may be thankful for the memories Lucca left us, but it is not next year today.

Tomorrow I will thank Lucca for being a good dog and will give her a generous serving of turkey. Later in the evening, I will encourage her to roll over on her back so I can give her a good tummy rub.

J.E. Dean writes on politics, government, and, too infrequently, about a Goldendoodle named Lucca. A former counsel on Capitol Hill and public affairs consultant, Dean also writes for Dean’s List on Medium and Dean’s Issues & Insights on Substack.

 

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Fiction takes a dive by Al Sikes

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When Donald Trump appeared on the political scene in 2015, I recall wondering how far the NBC network program, The Apprentice, had enhanced his reputation. I certainly didn’t anticipate he would soon be called Mr. President. But then TV for many still had an incandescent power. The show was an amalgam of fiction and non-fiction, but the conclusion was that Trump got it right. Trump got it right.

And then Trump was President. The opposition Party, the Democrats,  were often Trump’s opposites. Rather than choosing the best candidate for the job—Trump’s fictional skill—they doubled down on the notion that they knew best and would spend, interrupt lives and reshape merit to suit their social/political construct. Unfortunately for them the overarching narrative of life in America didn’t seem to be improving as the programs promised, leaving the Trump fiction of competence, if not ascendant, at least superior in a political battle of inferiors.

I use the word inferiors because a search of 20th Century history fails to disclose less attractive choices on the ballot. I say that not to disparage Hillary Clinton or Kamala Harris, but to note that not only did they not have the benefit of being polished by TV producers but were often pushing an upside down version of the world—spending and regulating our way to nirvana.

History has recorded that American ingenuity and prosperity could build  vast logistics and transportation networks, launch a trip to the planets, while conquering tyranny. And it should be added, while caring for the sick and disabled. But, we have also proven that our assortment of governments were not going to make everything just right for everybody.

Trump’s opposition, frequently social engineers, also decided that gender was bendable, late term abortions were part of reproductive rights and that illegal immigrants should become a welcome class.

Trump has been extraordinarily lucky. As his casino businesses were failing, his TV image was improving. And TV, after all, knows. Plus even though he had no experience leading a government from the municipal level up, he was being portrayed as The Guy. In short, the world of make believe transformed our judgment about what was needed in the “nasty” world of politics and Trump became for many the answer. Making America great again was not a job for the weak and Trump was certainly not that.

But now Trump finds himself in harm’s way. Having decided loyalty is the main thing that counts he is choosing a problematic cast to achieve his TV narrative. Would the TV Trump have chosen sycophants to be the winners? In his first term honest to God competent officials protected him because they were sworn to protect America. Now we are on the threshold of having Pete Hegseth rather than General James Mattis head our military.  And our health institutions, if he is confirmed, will be overseen by the conspiracy theorist and dreamer Bobby Kennedy. And while many of the “I’m just glad to have a job” choices will be buffered by clearly competent people, the raw material for chaos will never be far from the front page. Oh, and add in Elon Musk, as the old adage goes, “politics will never be the same.” Musk is the ultimate disrupter and its hard for his detractors to just write him off as some far-right oddball. Indeed, far-right does not define the President-Elect’s agenda.

Politics and its companion, public service, is not a sport ESPN follows. We get psyched up each day to watch our teams while betting on them and listening to over caffeinated sports analysts tell us what is right or wrong. And much of sports debate is about the future. Who should we draft? Who should we trade for? Has Coach hit a ceiling? Should he be replaced? And on and on. Well Trump is it. He is in for four years. He can’t be traded for another President. The best the pessimists can do is root for the Constitution and the powers it places in the other branches—the Congress and the Courts and our own power, free speech.

But let me distill this set of circumstances down to something we can judge, just like on Monday we can look back on how our teams did over the weekend. Former Congressman Matt Gaetz will not be Attorney General. Advise and consent at work—all judgment has not been anesthetized by Trump’s lusts.

How about Pete Hegspeth for Defense? He should make a Gaetz-like exit. Senator Rubio for the State Department? He deserves a serious hearing as do a number of the President-Elect’s indicated nominees. And looking on the bright side, politics is too often uninteresting and in our distraction society many of these nomination hearings before the US Senate will offer up compulsive drama.

But, fiction needs to be understood as fiction. Donald Trump, by putting loyalty ahead of competence or integrity, is not all that good at selecting leaders. Full stop! Democracy does not convert the ridiculous to the sublime. Gaetz was a ridiculous choice regardless of Trump’s defeat of Kamala Harris. The rote reaction that Trump won and deserves all of his choices is infantile. Trump prevailed in a match of inferiors and the US should be protected.

Al Sikes is the former Chair of the Federal Communications Commission under George H.W. Bush. Al writes on themes from his book, Culture Leads Leaders Follow published by Koehler Books. 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Let’s watch what happens in the next four years by Maria Grant

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No one has a crystal ball that can accurately predict the future. And though many of us think we have all the answers, the fact is that we just don’t. Here are some issues on my watchlist over the next four years.

The national debt rose almost $7.3 trillion in Trump’s last administration. That’s the third biggest increase, relative to the size of the economy, of any other President. George W. Bush and Abraham Lincoln‘s deficits were bigger relatively speaking. Trump dealt with the pandemic. Bush had two foreign conflicts. Lincoln financed the Civil War. Biden, dealing with the aftermath of the pandemic, borrowed $4.3 trillion according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Let’s watch what happens next.

During Trump’s last administration, he appointed three conservative Supreme Court Justices: Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. These appointments led to the overturning of Roe v Wade and the Supreme Court’s ruling that gives presidents broad immunity for official acts. Biden appointed one liberal Supreme Court Justice—Ketanji Brown Jackson. It is anticipated that during Trump’s next administration, conservative Justices Thomas and Alito will retire, enabling Trump to appoint two much younger conservative Justices—who could perhaps hold those positions for more than 30 years. Let’s watch what happens next.

Trump deported approximately 1.5 million undocumented immigrants during his four years as President. At this point in time, Biden has almost matched that number of deportations. With Trump’s new appointment of Border Czar Tom Homan, let’s watch what happens next. 

When president, Trump’s suggested cures for Covid included injecting bleach, chloroquine, and hydroxychloroquine into veins. With the anti-vax, anti-fluoride RFK Jr. at the helm of HHS, and Dr. Oz, of coffee-bean extract and Reiki-energy healing fame, taking control of Medicare and Medicaid, let’s watch what happens next.

The average year-over-year inflation rate under Trump was 1.9 percent (influenced by the pandemic). Under Biden, so far it is 5.2 percent. Let’s watch what happens next. 

The former Trump administration imposed nearly $80 billion worth of new taxes on Americans by levying tariffs on thousands of products. The Biden administration kept most of those tariffs in place and added an additional $18 billion on Chinese goods, including semiconductors and electric vehicles, for an additional tax increase of $3.6 billion. Trump’s proposed tariff hikes are estimated to increase taxes by another $524 billion, shrink the GDP by at least 0.8 percent, and eliminate 684,000 full-time equivalent jobs. Academic and government studies indicate that the Trump-Biden tariffs raised prices, reduced output, and employment, and produced a net negative impact on the U.S. economy. Let’s watch what happens next.

From a climate change perspective, the Biden administration has cut total greenhouse gas emissions, passed a climate-smart economic stimulus package, and sought environmental justice. Trump plans to boost fossil-fuel production, has rallied against wind turbines and electric vehicles, and has threatened to claw back unspent climate funding. Let’s watch what happens next—particularly let’s keep a close eye on how such policies will affect the Eastern Shore’s environmental issues. 

In most cases, past presidents have appointed cabinet leaders, even those with controversial points of view, with deep relevant subject-matter expertise. A majority of Trump’s cabinet picks lack government experience and deep relevant expertise. Let’s watch what happens next. 

Because of the pandemic, Trump offered students the ability to defer payments on their student loans. Biden forgave more than $166 billion in student loan debt. Trump has now proposed eliminating the Department of Education which could mark the end of low-interest loans for students. Some economists predict that private lending institutions will once again resume that role. Let’s watch what happens next. 

When Trump left office, the Federal Reserve interest rate was .25 percent (once again influenced by the pandemic). When Biden leaves office, the Federal Reserve interest rate will be around 4.6 percent. Let’s see what happens next.

The astronaut Neil Armstrong once wrote, “Science has not yet mastered prophecy. We predict too much for the next year and yet far too little for the next 10.”  

Truer words have not been spoken.

Maria Grant was principal-in-charge of the federal human capital practice of an international consulting firm. While on the Eastern Shore, she focuses on writing, reading, music, and nature.

 

 

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

‘Tis the Season by Jamie Kirkpatrick

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And just like that, it’s the holiday season. First, there’s that (snow) flurry of family, friends, football, and food we call Thanksgiving. It’s late this year, and for some of us, there’s less to be thankful for, but nevertheless, most of us will gather around a laden table on Thursday and celebrate this bountiful land we live in. And whether we trace the origins of our feast to 1621 and a ragtag band of pilgrim immigrants and a generous band of Wampanoags, or to George Washington’s Presidential Proclamation in 1789, let’s all agree to put aside our differences for a day and come together in gratitude. Amen!

But as soon as we wobble away from our respective Thanksgiving tables, that’s when the fun will really start. First, there’s Black Friday, or as it’s now known as Black Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. There’s just nothing like running up your credit card four weeks before the main event—Christmas, or, if you prefer a different December blow-out, Chanukkah or Kwanzaa. Plus, in my not-so-little family, there are a couple of birthdays and a wedding anniversary that fall within the bounds of the holiday season to keep us focused and chubby.

Don’t get me wrong: I am NOT the Grinch and I don’t rue these holidays (or, as I like to call them, these holidaze). Just color me a little dubious. Sure, maybe we should celebrate a good harvest, or a critical religious event, or our various cultures, but just don’t forget: these modern celebrations are just recreations of pagan ceremonies centered around mystery, darkness, and rebirth. They are shadows on the wall of Plato’s cave, and, like it or not, we are all still prisoners of that cave with no knowledge of what lies outside it. But never mind; in the meantime, let’s all eat, drink, and be merry, or, at least, pretend to. What have we got to lose besides a few pounds in January?

But I digress. There is just one more wrinkle to this year’s holiday agenda. A weekend hence, our little town will celebrate Charles Dickens and all things Dickensian. Men will don top hats and spats; women will cinch their waists and put on bonnets, and for a day or two, we will all be transported back in time to that sooty Victorian Era. And if that were not enough, for reasons that lie beyond my ken, my wife and I have agreed to open our home for a few hours to visitors who have signed up for the Dickens Weekend house tour. Of course, this means that as soon as the Thanksgiving dishes are done, we’ll have to start decorating for a Dickens of a Christmas.

But fear not! My wife has a keen eye for arranging and decorating, and Mr. Dickens is just whom she needs to keep her company during the holidays. Boxes relegated to the attic for eleven months of the year have already come downstairs for their precious few days in the spotlight. There are wooden carolers, a Navajo crèche (don’t ask), and a small tree with several bagpiping Santa ornaments in the living room. Spode china, candles in a polished silver candelabra, and a home-made boxwood table scape will adorn the dining room. There will be festive lights in the windows and a wreath by the front door; a Christmas swag for the gate and pine rope along the fence. And, to top it all off, we’ll put up a tree with oyster shell ornaments and a silver star on top in the front yard. We have neither chimney nor fireplace, so, alas, no stockings, but there are bows to be tied and bells to be rung. And should my wee Christmas magician see something slightly awry, she’ll tweak her artistry until she gets it just the way she wants it, at least for the next few minutes. Her art is always a work in progress, but I will say that when it all comes together, it’s always perfect.

So, even though we’re just getting started, I wish you the joys of this madding season. May all your days be merry and bright!

I’ll be right back.

 

Jamie Kirkpatrick is a writer and photographer who lives in Chestertown. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Washington College Alumni Magazine, and American Cowboy Magazine. His new novel, “The Tales of Bismuth; Dispatches from Palestine, 1945-1948” explores the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is available on Amazon.

 

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.