Americans approach Christmas 2023 in a dark angry environment that has divided millions, even families and friends.  Bethlehem, even Santa Claus and definitely “Silent Night” seem far away and somewhat artificial. Two full scale wars, massive death and destruction in Europe and the Middle East and violence and hate elsewhere have definitely dimmed our Christmas Spirit.  

When I’ve been overseas and away from my family during Christmas, generally depressed, I remember an amazing event that happened over 100 years ago.   It always reminds me that there is a special human quality that Christmas can activate, regardless of existing conditions and emotions. 

There is no more dismal, discouraging personal situation than that found on December 24, 1914 in the cold, wet shallow, narrow trench occupied by  an 18 year old British machine gunner, named Bruce Bairnsfather. He was hungry, freezing and scared.  His unit,  the 1st Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment had been fighting the Germans  for 3 months. They ate stale biscuits and tried to smoke cigarettes, too wet to light.  And it was Christmas Eve. 

About 10 PM, he heard loud voices coming from the German trenches across the large field that separated them.  As he wrote after the war, he turned to the soldier next to him and asked: “Do you hear the Bochies kicking up that racket over there?” “ Yes, came the reply, they’ve been at it some time. They’re singing Christmas carols” Everyone in the trench stopped to listen. 

Someone then started yelling at them in English, with a heavy German accent. He was asking them to come join them.  With some suspicion, a British sergeant said, “you come halfway and I’ll come halfway”.  Nervously, the Germans and the British, left their trenches and met in the barbed wire filled “No mans land”.  What happened next is still remembered.  

They had a spontaneous Christmas party. Handshakes all around, wine was found and a soccer game began  Bairnsfather wrote years later that he couldn’t believe his eyes: “Here they were the common soldiers of the German Army and there was not an atom of hate on either side. “

There were other similar instances across the Western Front that day when  small numbers of Germans,  French, Belgian and British troops created their own peace on Christmas Eve.  On December 26, 1914, they resumed killing each other. 

WWI dragged on for four more years at a terrifying cost: 9.7 million military and 10 million civilians were killed. The wounded totaled some 21 million.

As grim as things seem to us this 2023  Christmas Season, they definitely don’t match what Bairnsfather and the other British and German soldiers were enduring on December 24, 1914.   

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

The MAGA conservatives moved away from policy positions as a platform, years ago, when they discovered people’s feelings were more malleable than policy opinions. It took a while, but Parents Rights, LGBTQ+ Attitudes, State Legislatures’ Independence, God’s Christian Politics, and anti-liberty Federal Government as the enemy, became effective political assault nukes. 

But, there already existed an increasingly effective weaponized word: “abortion”. It had been introduced into the Republican electoral armory during Nixon’s re-election campaign and was eventually adopted.  Over time, it became a very powerful Christian-charged partisan  issue, recast as Pro-Life. The Democrats’ Pro-Choice struck many as too passive. And finally in 2022, the 50 year-old Constitutional right to abortion, was struck down by a more conservative Supreme Court majority.  

In the November 2022 mid-term elections, Democrats unexpected success was largely based on  the other party’s harsh state anti-abortion laws in the former confederacy. And then on December 8, 2023 the Texas Supreme Court denied a young woman’s request for an emergency exception to the state law forbidding abortions. It has become the highest profile abortion case since Roe v. Wade.

Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, had announced earlier his intention to criminally charge the woman’s gynecologist, if he performed the abortion. This case is receiving largely negative national and international media attention because the court and the prosecutor, ignored the obvious seriousness of the threats to the pregnant mother’s life and the likely still born infant. And for what reason?  Possibly to punish the woman and her family for wanting to abort the baby. Many would call it cruelty. 

Substitution. Given “abortion’s” sharply declining utility to the more radical Republican strategy, there was an obvious, immediate need for an equally muscular and divisive replacement. And the Israel-Hamas War provided it. It’s some mixture of  anti-Zionism, anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian, genocide of either or both, which has been translated into “anti-Semitism” on elite (Democratic leaning) university campuses”. It made its dramatic political debut at a 12/06/23 House Hearing, ,where Congresswoman Elise Stefanik interrogated the presidents of Harvard, MIT and the University of Pennsylvania about their policies re  genocide threats to Jews. The three should have been guided by common sense, not their attorneys’ advice.

It was a stunning success for Ms Stefanik and has resulted in the resignation of the University of Pennsylvania’s head and an unsuccessful attempt to force Harvard’s out as well. There is little doubt that variations of the theme: “Democrats are anti-Semitic” will be used more and more by the other party during the 2024 campaign.  I also foresee more House investigations of liberal-leaning universities racial/ethnic biases. 

Conclusion.  I confess, I’m not sure it’s possible to criticize Israel’s Netanyahu Government, without being accused of anti-Semitism.  Or if it’s OK to urge more US/Western attention to relieve the Palestinian’s catastrophic humanitarian situation, without being accused of pro-HAMAS sympathies.  Predictably, a confusion  politicians will deepen.  

Just a reflection, but the Nazis’ murder of 6 million Jews during WWII – the Holocaust – led to the post-war allied decision to support the establishment of a Jewish homeland in the, then British colonial Mandate for Palestine. During the decades between 1948 (independence of Israel) and 2023, the prevailing image of Israel and Israelis in “Exodus”, carried with it a strong belief in Israel as David fighting the Arab Goliath.  The automatic US support for the defense of and economic assistance for, Israel was assumed by Americans..  

It would seem the Israel-Hamas War may contribute to the fading away of his perception. 

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

 

Given the emerging speculation about what will follow the massive death and destruction visited upon Israel and Gaza since 10/07/23, there is for me, an important fact to be understood: Hamas is not a country. 

Introduction: Hamas is a violent movement that encapsulates all Palestinian-Arab anger and rage that began in 1948. During the 74 intervening years, Israeli actions deepened these emotions and grievances, out of which a terrorist organization evolved.  It took control of Gaza and generally over the West Bank. It acquired $billions, the support of Iran and others and invested in developing a trained, disciplined and well-armed military force, equipped with a range of modern weapon systems. 

If Hamas were a country, it could be defeated, its government and military dissolved and the winner placed in charge of the loser’s future.  But, Hamas is not a country, it resembles a religious crusade driven by a belief in and dedication to, recovering its holy land from the Jews, who with America’s help conquered and enslaved them.  Powerful motivation. 

If Hamas can no longer operate from Gaza and the West Bank, they’ll relocate and rebuild, with considerable help from Iran and other Middle Eastern and Gulf Arab states. The support may even include Europeans and Americans, who have responded positively to Palestinian suffering in Gaza. In the interim, its leadership will operate from  its headquarters in Qatar, where they will continue to plan and implement terrorist assaults. 

What about the 4-6 million now homeless, desperate, revenge seeking Palestinian civilians? They will continue to be helped by the UN, Western and Middle Eastern governments and international humanitarian organizations. 

Is there  another approach?  The US organizes an international conference to address an agenda for a later decision-making gathering, aimed at creating an independent Palestinian state.    

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

The US Government reacted very quickly after Hamas’s brutal 10/07/23 assault on southern Israel.  From the highest Washington levels, America’s complete support for Israel and its right to defend itself, were repeatedly underscored. And then on 10/17/23, President Biden traveled to Jerusalem/ Tel Aviv to personally reassure the Israeli people, that  America had their back.  

Two US carrier battle groups were deployed to the Eastern Med, to deter others, particularly Iran and Hezbollah, from broadening the conflict. The United States had the initiative and dominated the story line, until 10-27-23 when Israeli ground forces entered Gaza and its air force continued its indiscriminate bombing.   

The devastation of Gaza, the attacks on hospitals, the mounting death toll of Palestinian civilians, now over 11,000, including some 4,000 children, has placed the US Government on the defensive. Under US pressure, the Israeli Government reluctantly agreed to daily pauses to allow tens of thousands of Palestinians to move South safely and to receive the humanitarian assistance they need.  However, Jerusalem continues to refuse all ceasefire suggestions, with somewhat wavering US support.  

Sharp increases in anti-Semitic violence are widespread and international public opinion has divided:  (1) Pro Palestinian, anti Israel, anti-US and (2) pro-Israel, but also blaming the US for not forcing Netanyahu to avoid the current high level of death and destruction. Large demonstrations of supporters of both views are taking place around the world.  But, somewhat surprising, have been the student conflicts on US campuses, including against Jews.       

Perhaps inevitably, the two positions have become politicized in the US. Republicans are exclusively pro Israel and identify pro-Palestinians as Hamas.  The only House member who is Palestinian in origin, has been censored by her colleagues, for pro-Palestinian remarks. The Republicans also have shifted their support from Ukraine to Israel, but deleted aid to both from their Continuing Resolution. 

Common sense and civility are MIA in Congress.  

How can America Regain Control and Positive Momentum? Simply put, by dramatically changing the subject from the on-going Palestinian human catastrophe, to its (and Israel’s) long-term solution. The US government like most others can be captured by today’s crises because they are in-your-face, demanding immediate attention.  In November 2023, examples re Israel, Gaza and the Palestinians are: longer combat pauses, humanitarian aid delivery and hostage exchanges.  

But, what if President Biden, announced that the US will host a Conference at, for instance, Camp David in early 2024, to discuss the establishment of the independent state of Palestine. It would be leaked as international consultations get underway and would quickly monopolize the thrust of rampant speculation about how, who and where.  Israel would not be pleased because the pressure on Netanyahu to negotiate a ceasefire, would increase ten fold and more quietly, would include the US.  

It’s useful to recall that between June 30 and November 10, 1944, as WWII raged in Europe and the Pacific,  the US organized two conferences (Bretton Woods, NH and Dumbarton Oaks, WDC), where the post war economic order, international reconstruction and the UN organization, were planned.  Probably easier then, absent social media and TikTok. 

Unhelpful Internal Political Dynamics: There is a surprising similarity between some aspects of today’s American and Israeli political situations. Netanyahu and his quite authoritarian government have been working to eliminate the only existing check on its power – the Supreme Court. During the summer and into the fall, massive public demonstrations took place, strongly opposed to this anti democratic action. Reserve Air Force officers, even announced they would no longer participate in regular training exercises, sending a very strong signal regarding the depth of the opposition.  

Moreover, some important cabinet members are prominent fundamentalist Orthodox Jews with an agenda. Most Israelis and American Jews are reform oriented and more secular.  That being said, there has never been civil marriage in Israel, and the agenda being pursued, includes possibly limiting automatic access to Israeli citizenship, to Orthodox Jews. 

And finally, Netanyahu has been able to avoid prosecution for corruption and bribery as long as he is prime minister.  However, once the war and elimination of Hamas no longer dominate Israel, e.g. proposed US conference on Palestine statehood, it’s likely the Netanyahu government would fall because of the “surprise” October 7 massacre and also their attempts to weaken Israel’s democracy. The efforts to introduce stricter Orthodox restrictions also wouldn’t help. 

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

The US Congress is closed because of human failure in the House.  However, if the cause, for instance, were a terrorist attack on the Capitol, resulting in the death of House members, including its leadership, what would the Executive Branch do to help Congress get back to work? Who knows?

During 30 years working in the State Department, I participated in a number of  exercises addressing similar emergencies aimed at reconstituting a viable US government. However, the reality today is no scenario. It involves multiple domestic and foreign crises that require Congressional action. The entire federal government could be forced to shut in 4-5 weeks because the Continuing Resolution Congress recently passed, ends in November.  And the inability of the House to elect its speaker means no one has the authority to convene its members, to address and vote on funding (or any) legislation.     

Moreover, the the US for circa 20 months has been leading a NATO/EU coalition supporting Ukraine, as it fights to eject the Russians. And then on October 7, 2023, Israel was brutally attacked by HAMAS and has now declared war against it. 

The US is unable to pass legislation to continue financial and military aid to Ukraine, which has set the standard for our European allies’ efforts.  Similarly, for the same reason, Washington is unable to appropriate and authorize the aid Israel very much needs now.  

What did President Madison and the members of Congress do after the British burned down the Capitol and the White House on August 24, 1814? Dolly Madison saved the famous portrait of George Washington, but what did her husband and his Congressional colleagues do? They probably didn’t wait for the Speaker, Henry Clay to get things organized. Actually, Madison and his immediate staff escaped to what is today, Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

The world, very much including the US,  is confronting era-shaping challenges: global warming, pandemics, a major war in Europe, a belligerent China and louder domestic, sometimes violent, demands for more authoritarian and less democratic, governance.  A noticeable trans-Atlantic political mood shift, reminiscent of the interwar period, is also underway; a time when religious and ethnic minorities, were political & physical targets and strong-man rule was ascendant.  President Biden himself describes the choice American voters will face on 11/05/24 as  between democracy and authoritarianism. 

America in 2023 reflects a very strange sociopolitical reality, one which a columnist recently described as a “…digitally connected yet emotionally disjointed and spiritually unmoored society.“  The latter could explain why one of America’s two historically dominant political parties, has been co-opted by a radical authoritarian element, led by a charismatic demagogue. 

While it retains the trappings of a certified US party, its irresponsible actions, disinterest in governing in accordance with the Constitution and resort to violent insurrection in 2021, are characteristic of mass movements pursuing political power to rule.  Over the past 3-5 years, it has also acquired the patina of a personality cult. 

Other established democratic governments are experiencing similar internal anti-democratic pressures. Germany’s electoral politics now includes a relatively new political party, the AfD (Alternative for Germany). Its platform includes Islamophobia, anti-immigration, hyper-nationalism and climate-change denial. Over 8 years, it  has  won enough seats in the Bundestag to threaten the Chancellor’s own party. 

Even Israel has gone from “Exodus” to a battle between outraged voters and their hyper-conservative government. The prime minister’s coalition is working to end the Israeli Supreme court’s authority to overturn “unreasonable” legislation – the only existing check on dictatorial  tendencies.  

Assessing the staying power of the US Constitutional system is not easy. However, a Harvard history professor, Dr. Serhi Plokhy, suggested a good starting point.  “History, he said, makes the present legible”.  The following traces through millennia, instances when democratic forms of government were replaced or preceded by more  autocratic systems.  

Ancient Rome and Greece to 1787 Philadelphia

Roman Republic (509-27BC) emerged after a group of aristocrats successfully revolted against the last Etruscan King.  Inspired by the earlier Greek democracies, they introduced one of the  earliest and longest-lived representative democracies. It collapsed centuries later because of serious economic problems, wide-spread public corruption and a civil war started and won by a popular general, Julius Caesar. He was Rome’s dictator for 2 years  until his assassination on March 15, 44BC.

Athens and Plato 

Plato (427-347BC) believed democracy was inherently weak, vulnerable to dictators and unable to produce leaders with the intelligence, ability and skills to govern effectively. During his life time in Athens, he experienced oligarchies,,direct democracy and tyrannies, but died before Macedonia conquered Athens (338BC). 

Roman Empire (27BC – 476AD) Caesar’s great nephew, Augustus, became Rome’s first emperor. Many Centuries later, after a long internal decline, the western Empire ended in 476AD, when the last Roman Emperor, Romulus,was defeated by Germanic barbarian forces.  The Empire continued in the East (Byzantium)  for 1100 more years, until several debilitating internal civil wars resulted in the 1442AD fall of Constantinople, to an Ottoman army. The 1400 plus year reigns of these two closely related Empires, represents the longest tenure to date of a single form of government. 

Italian City States (12th – 14th Century). They styled themselves as “republics” and were able to innovate because the Alps protected them, from invasions by the Germanic Holy Roman Emperors.  Left to themselves, they developed limited representative governments, early capitalism, banking and accounting. However, by the 14th Century all, except Venice,  had become hereditary duchies and principalities.  

Great Britain. The long march to the US Constitution and its representative democracy,  began in 13th Century England. The barons had grown tired of King John’s arbitrary rule and his poaching on their prerogatives. In 1215, they forced him to sign the Magna Carta, subjecting him to the same traditional common law and the document’s rights, that all subjects followed. It is considered the cornerstone of our individual liberties today. The barons also created an oversight Committee of 26 (barons) to ensure the king didn’t stray,:an acknowledged ancestor of the UK Parliament.

Fifty years later, in 1265, a powerful British noble, Simon de Montfort convened what is considered the first “representative” parliament, because he invited commoner town/city officials to join the barons and knights to discuss governance issues. The lower house of the British Parliament is called the Commons.

Much later, in the 17th Century, two British civil wars challenged the “excessive” powers of the monarchy versus the parliament’s. King Charles I was executed, leading to 5 years of Oliver Cromwell’s puritanism and military dictatorship.  Cromwell died in 1658, and Charles II was restored to his father’s throne in 1660. Puritanism faded fast.

The Glorious Revolution (1688-89) saw the bloodless deposition of the Roman Catholic King, James II & his daughter’s and her husband William’s peaceful accession as co-monarchs. Both were Protestants. 

Almost coincident, in 1689 two British intellectuals, Isaac Newton and John Locke wrote 2 manuscripts. Together, they formed the basis of the The Enlightenment,  a hugely liberalizing political philosophy. They described it as an attempt to  synthesize the relationship between God, Man and Human Nature. Many of America’s founders were deeply influenced by it.  And Jefferson, translated it for the Declaration of Independence as: “…all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. “ 

The Revolution, the Constitution and the Birth of the United States of America

Many of the 55  Americans attending the May 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, had an Enlightenment vision in mind for their new country.  Also, they and other Revolutionary leaders had grown up in the 13 colonies, were very familiar with Britain’s political history and had experienced its colonial governance structure: an executive and a 2 house legislature (appointed council & elected assembly).

. The final draft of the Constitution was completed in September 1787. But, ratification was delayed to allow stronger protections for citizens against a possibly overbearing Federal Government, to be added. The first ten amendments to the Constitution (Bill of Rights) were inserted and the revised draft was sent to the state legislatures. It should be noted, that slavery economics had been ignored, in order to get Southern ratification.

By March 9, 1789  a majority of states had approved it and some 9 months later, US and UK reps.  signed the Treaty of Paris, formally ending the Revolution and recognizing the independence of the USA. 

Has the Past made our Political Present Legible? 

Yes, it helps, The earlier mini-review of Western political evolution, does offer two  general conclusions: (1) no single form of government lasts forever and (2) the thousands of major changes in Western forms of government since 427BC (Plato’s birth) have included few that were gradual, calm or even peaceful.  

Moreover, today’s political environment is also being shaped by three singular 21st Century realities: (1) the existence of social media/special apps; (2) the willingness of some 2000 Americans to violently overthrow the legitimate outcome of the 2020 presidential election (failed) and (3) the party’s presumed 2024 presidential candidate is the one whose loss of reelection in 2020, led to the failed 2021, assault on the US Capitol.

Since late 2021, he has been indicted by 4 courts on 91 criminal charges.  However, his popularity among millions of party members has not diminished.  If convicted or again loses, what then?  . For the preceding 156 years (1865-2021), the US had avoided any comparable American on American brutality, for political ends.  

The co-opted party gained a small House majority in January 2023.  The radicals, under the leadership of their speaker, who traded his authority for the job, has been unable to control their dysfunction and chaos. In May they were responsible for a very near US default on its debt and in September, for a likely closure of the Federal Government on 10/01/23. The party itself continues to undermine US agencies and departments. 

Benjamin Franklin understood the fragility of this form of government he had just helped  create. As he left the Pennsylvania State House in September 1787, he answered a passerby’s query: “We have a Republic, he said,  if you can keep it.” And that’s the question we face today: Can we keep it?

That’s a known unknown (thanks to former SecDef Rumsfeld). 

“There are three kinds of people: those who see; those who see when they are shown; and those who do not see.” – Leonardo da Vinci

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

In 2004 and 2005, a total of 8,250,401 new Americans were born.  Millions of them, will be voting for the first time on November 5, 2024 to elect, among others, the president of the United States. 

From my  senior citizen perspective, the 2 years and 8 months since the 2020 election have been variably depressing, extremely weird and deeply concerning, They have included: the violent 1/06/21 insurrection,  a failed complex effort to overturn America’s democratic electoral process and on 1/20/2021, the first non-peaceful transfer of power in US history. What a contrast to those halcyon politics and elections of long ago.

More recently, a former US president and current 2024 candidate, has been indicted in 4 courts for 80+ allegations of criminal conduct. Some or all of the trials will be held before the 2024 election  Opinions on this litigation have contributed to today’s deep chasm between Americans view of the current health and viability of the United States and its future. 

The confluence of our sociopolitical seismic eruptions with the Covid-19 pandemic, severe global warming disasters, American domestic violence, the ongoing war in Ukraine and China’s belligerence to the US over Taiwan, lends something of an apocalyptic aura to the 2024 election season. And possibly reinforcing this more cosmic quality, is a  campaign theme introduced by President Biden when he characterized next November’s choice for American voters as between authoritarianism and democracy. 

And then there’s Social Media, blogs, chat rooms and special apps offering thousands of interpretations of all this for hundreds of millions of people, including many if not most, of first time American voters.  I’m sure some of them follow (on-line) the Federal Reserve minutes, the Congressional Research Service (CRS)  reports and  the Council on Foreign Relations publications. Probably, most don’t.

This large number of first time American voters confront violence, dysfunction, confusion, sharply divided opinions and beliefs, suffused with high emotions. Not to mention a former US president running in the 2024 election who’s facing an array of criminal trials and strongly maintains election fraud stole his reelection. And millions of Americans agree.  Some or all of this turmoil is no doubt present in their or their friends’ families, among peers and is inescapable on Social Media.

When I cast my first ballot, there were two dominant parties each with well known policy positions and attitudes towards governance. Easy and comfortable choices. If the 2023/24 political environment had existed then, I probably would not have voted. And I would guess this will be the decision of a number of new voters as well. Another possible option would be to maintain the peace and go with the family or friends’ flow. 

What follows is a description of the formidable puzzle of issues facing those among them who want to make independent choices, not affected by fear mongering, alternative facts and loud voices.  

Recent polling reveals large numbers of American adults already are or should be, in group therapy to address mass depression.  And many of 2024 first-time voters live with, are taught by, or work for or know, these people. The likely impact on their 18 year-old children, students, bosses or parents’ friends is to discourage them from voting.  Why bother trying to save a sinking ship?. Or maybe give it a shot.  

Miasma: Unwholesome or foreboding atmosphere 

Adult American Views on the State of the USA

Who? In danger of failing, Not in Danger, but Bad Problems

All registered Voters	37.00%	26.00%
Republicans	56.00%	28.00%
Democrats	20.00%	25.00%
Republican Men	50.00%	34.00%
Republican Women	65.00%	21.00%
Democratic Men	11.00%	27.00%
Democratic Women	25.00%	24.00%

NYT/Siena College Poll 7/2023

But, What does all this Mean?

If I were a shrink, which I’m not, but just based on the results of this poll, I would vote for all Democratic male candidates, including their much more successful and optimistic current president, seeking reelection. His major Republican competitor is a former president, who describes the US as failing and himself as the only salvation. 

Also, on the Republican side, I was not surprised to find that the smallest member of the Party’s coalition (8%) called the “New Comers”,is the one with with the most young people (18-29); 59% are white and 18% Hispanic. They are solidly behind Mr. Trump and opposed to President Biden. 

The article goes on to describe them, surprisingly, as overwhelmingly in support of immigration reform and social acceptance of transgender people. Not exactly in line with the Freedom Caucus or the 52% of the Party, labeled either Traditional Conservatives (Rick Perry-like) or Right Wing (Ted Cruz-like).  

The  New Comers (Vivek Ramaswamy-like) are said to be deeply unhappy with the state of the country and 90% believe the US economy is poor.  They agreed they would support candidates focused on fighting the radical “Woke” rather than those targeting law and order. 

I have no idea what America’s first time 2024 voters will do. However, given the environment they now inhabit, I wish them God Speed. However, I do offer, for reflection, three quotes from two founding fathers expressing their views on future American elections. 

Alexander Hamilton: 

“American elections provide a moral certainty that the office of president will seldom fall to the lot of any man, who is not in an eminent degree, endowed with the requisite qualifications.”  

James Madison:

“The people will have the virtue and intelligence to select men of virtue and wisdom to lead their Republic.  If not, then Americans are in a wretched situation”

“Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives.  Wherever there is interest and power to do wrong, wrong will generally win.”

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

I recently read an article about a state’s fresh approach to public schools and parental rights and started laughing.  My wife told me I should be outraged, not amused and said it just confirms my advanced age.  And she’s doubtless right. My much younger relatives remind me repeatedly that I don’t get it.  To which I silently think: “Thank God”. 

The year is 2023 and in this American state, elected legislators and their governor have passed and signed laws threatening districts with a $10,000 fine if they do not enforce the following legal requirement: visitors, students, teachers, staff and trans must use school restrooms corresponding  to their birth sex OR use a special one-stall facility. And there’s more.

Gender: 

• State law defines a person’s sex/gender by “…the external genitalia present at birth”.
• Parents must fill out a form that provides their child’s nickname or new name that doesn’t correspond to legal name, e.g. Rob is OK, but Roberta is not. However, in some counties, parents can give permission for their child to use Roberta instead of Rob.
• Teachers are not permitted to ask students what their preferred pronouns are. If one does,s/he can lose their teaching certificate.
• A new teacher in a county public school was told recently  how to address a trans colleague: instead of using Mr. Ms or Mrs, use “teacher” 

Sex Ed: 

• Before these restrictive state laws were passed, county school districts had some discretion over how and what was taught. 
• The state has now asserted superior authority over county districts sex ed and wants to review all curricula and materials.
• The state wants the sex ed message to be: “abstinence” 
• The state’s guidance on sex ed is that students must be taught that “…the male and female reproductive roles are binary, stable and unchangeable”.

Books:

• Any member of the public can challenge any book in a school library. The bulk of those books are about LGBTQ experiences or structural racism. “Romeo and Juliet” was challenged and briefly removed, because Shakespeare’s implication was the two had sex
• State certified media specialists review books in classroom libraries for appropriateness. .
• One county requires parents to fill out a “Media Access Form”.  The options for their children are: (1) Unrestricted, (2) Prevent access to (list) and (3) Access to Books: except those that have been challenged and reviewed (regardless of decision) 

After laughing at what seemed to me the absurdity of an intrusive government layering on bizarre rules about bathrooms, gender and sex, I began to think about their impact on students. It became clear that essentially, these law/regs excluded opportunities for students to be challenged, even shocked and ask questions, discuss issues with peers, parents and teachers and learn.  That’s what my friends and teammates did every day usually generating clashing conclusions and intense arguments that taught more lessons.  

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.

Is your house hosting an unprecedented mob of persistent ants?  Ours definitely is. However, when the cats started complaining about ants in their food bowls and most irritating, in their cat box, I was told this problem had to be addressed and solved.  

The first facts I uncovered were not encouraging: colonies generally contain from 20-100,000 ants with a possible life span of 20 years.  And like humans, their general health and longevity can be influenced by their place, called caste, in the matriarchal ant class system.  Adult males live only a few days after mating with a female, but Queen Ants, the egg laying members of the colony, live the longest, even decades. Non-reproducing female Worker Ants spend their time serving the community and if food becomes scarce, it’s the Worker ants who will voluntarily stop eating.  No surprise, they usually die of exhaustion or malnutrition, in a few weeks or months.   

Reading further, I found ants are ectotherms and unlike humans, their body temperatures automatically adjust to that of their environment (within limits), no winter or summer wardrobes required.  

Is Global Warming the reason there are ant infestations like never before? Partially, but until Earth has moved further into the permanent heat wave,  the ants will adapt and continue spending time with us. However, when temperatures get above 120 degrees or below 10 degrees Fahrenheit, they will expire. So Phoenix, Arizona probably doesn’t have this problem. 

However, the series of 90 plus degree days we’ve been having dry up a number of the usual natural sources of water outside our houses. Moreover, it will deplete their food supply and cause them to venture outside their normal safe habitat and go where humans and animals congregate.  In these circumstances, ants will establish their colonies in or near human habitation to have better access to food and water. 

Why do we notice the ants? Because other insects don’t have the heat/cold tolerances the ants do and react differently. Termites find water by burrowing deeper into the ground, while Cockroaches already have their places staked out in our houses or offices. Neither, of them move in masses.  Thus, we see the ants, who are looking for our crumbs and the cats’ food and water.   

Tom Timberman is an Army vet, lawyer, former senior Foreign Service officer, adjunct professor at GWU, and economic development team leader or foreign government advisor in war zones. He is the author of four books, lectures locally and at US and European universities. He and his wife are 24 year residents of Kent County.