History has a way of putting things in perspective. I wonder what history will say about the past four years.

Presidential reputations change through the lens of history. President Wilson’s is an example of a President whose reputation has changed a lot as values have evolved.

During his term, President Woodrow Wilson was hailed as one of the best presidents ever. He was viewed as an intellectual, a global thinker, a progressive reformer, and the premier statesman of his time. An idealist, Wilson pursued a progressive agenda, lowering tariffs, creating the Federal Reserve System, championing antitrust legislation, establishing an income tax, improving protections for workers, and establishing the Federal Trade Commission. Wilson believed that federal government should regulate the economy, expose corruption, and improve society. He led us into World War I, creating a global image of the United States as a beacon of democracy. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1919.

But in the lens of the values of our time, he comes off as arrogant, compassionless, and moralistic; an intellectual whose lofty ideas masked his lack of concern for the people that he governed.

The most egregious actions of his presidency were his treatment of African Americans. He allowed his white supremacist Cabinet secretaries to implement racial segregation and discrimination within their departments. During Wilson’s presidency, the Treasury, the Post Office, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Navy, the Interior, the Marine Hospital, the War Department, and the Government Printing Office became segregated. Black supervisors were dismissed, cut off from promotions, and segregation became the pretext to adopt whites-only employment policies. Segregation persisted in the civil service over the next several decades. A Southerner, Wilson accepted segregation as part of a policy to “promote racial progress…by shocking the social system as little as possible.”

Black American leaders were not fooled. When W.E.B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter protested re-segregating Federal office buildings, Wilson replied:

“Segregation is not humiliating, but a benefit, and ought to be so regarded by you gentlemen.”

Wilson enabled Jim Crow laws to be instituted in Washington DC.

During Wilson’s presidency, D. W. Griffith’s film, The Birth of a Nation (1915) was the first motion picture to be screened in the White House. The film portrayed blacks as dangerous and ignorant and glorified the Ku Klux Klan as the Savior of the white population. His first Supreme Court appointee (his Attorney General, James McReynolds) famously turned his chair around to face the wall when African American attorneys addressed the court.

Wilson was equally insensitive to women’s rights. While he is credited with supporting the 19^th amendment, that only occurred after years of ignoring and imprisoning Suffragette protestors. Privately, he was concerned that rights for women would result in men not getting their meals, children not being cared for. Publicly, he indicated that it wasn’t time yet for women (his exact rationale for his treatment of Black Americans). He had peaceful Suffragette protestors arrested, force-fed, and given extended prison terms. Finally, women’s activities in the war effort and his concern that America would not be viewed as a leader of democracy allowed him to change his position. Even so, to appease Southern opposition, when he endorsed a national right to vote, he still argued that it was a state matter.

Wilson ran on the slogan “He kept us out of war,” but German aggression and his vision of a global role for America, caused him to support entry into the war.  To explain the purpose of the war, Wilson issued his Fourteen Points, which laid out a vision of a world where all nations demonstrated mutual cooperation and a League of Nations peacefully resolved all international disputes.

But he believed that once he had declared war, the American people needed to support it. He launched a sweeping propaganda campaign to instill hatred of both the Germans and those who did not support the war. To Wilson, disloyal individuals had “sacrificed their right to civil liberties” such as free speech and expression. He and Congress passed two unconstitutional laws, the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918, which criminalized any “disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language” about the U.S. government or military. These laws, now perceived as the most egregious violation of the 1^st Amendment, resulted in the prosecution and imprisonment of 2,000 Americans.

Regrettably, the Supreme Court upheld the Acts as constitutional limits on free speech in a time of war. The Sedition Act was repealed in 1920. But a portion of the Espionage act survives today and, Attorney General William P. Barr considered charging BLM protestors with sedition.

Some historians argue that the US entry into WWI caused WWII. Wilson’s inability to control the Allies resulted in vindictive surrender terms which required the German government to inflate its currency creating a runaway inflation that wiped out Germany’s middle class from which Hitler recruited his Nazis.

Further, Wilson’s refusal to compromise doomed the League of Nations. The 25th amendment was passed after his leadership was continued despite his stroke.

His fatal flaw was arrogance.

Compare him to Lincoln whose stature has soared over time. Lincoln cared deeply for humanity. He demonstrated great empathy and a willingness to be wrong, to listen to opposing viewpoints. Despite an initial unwillingness to address slavery, he eventually came to understand the need to end it. When the South surrendered, he was quick to forbid retribution. Wilson had an idealist vision, Lincoln cared for humanity, warts, and all.

And I believe that is the lesson that we can take from these two Presidents…a great President leads his people, forging their humanity with his own. A great President is humble and willing to listen to other viewpoints. He accepts his limitations and corrects his mistakes. Most importantly, a great President can forgive and look forward. Biden recognized Lincoln’s words were as true then as they are now.

“With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

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.

As many of you know, I am an experienced dog person. I am not a professional trainer, but by fostering and rehabilitating over 200 dogs, I have learned a lot about the human/dog relationship. Most of my learning has come through trial and error, but sometimes I get help along the way.

My first rescue was a 2-year-old, 70-pound, black German Shepherd named Abby. The rescue organization told me that she was a product of a divorce, meaning that she had no issues; but merely was in the wrong family at the wrong time. Over the next several years, my husband and I became convinced that she was the cause of the divorce.

Abby was a sweet, but difficult dog. She was anxious, paced constantly, barked, and whined incessantly.  When I was away, she would bark nonstop, even though my daughter and her nanny were home.  Most nights, she woke us up over the slightest sound, often her stress would result in stomach issues and she was a frequent visitor to the vet.

Each time the vet asked me how she was, I would smile and say what a great dog she was…but on her 5^th birthday, I broke down and cried.  I confessed about our struggles with her.  I had convinced myself that I was too busy to make this dog happy; I was a working mom, with a big job, a husband, a large house, and volunteer activities.

The vet smiled.

“I think that I know what the problem is. Your dog is frustrated because she can’t do what she was bred to do,” she went on.  “Your German Shepherd was bred to protect and herd, and she has nothing to do.”

“Many of the behavior problems that I see are due to a frustrated dog not doing what it was bred to do,” she continued.  “Never get a dog with a purpose.”

Then she suggested that I get another dog.

I looked at her as if she were wearing a spacesuit. “Are you kidding, I am struggling with Abby, why would I get another dog?”

“She needs something to do, she needs someone to care for, to herd, to protect.”

In desperation, I took her advice and bought a sweet little cockapoo puppy named Sophie that even looked like a miniature sheep (since then I only rescue, but I was desperate).  Everything changed.

Abby spent her days herding little Sophie, gently correcting, and protecting her.  Abby would subtly lie between a visitor and Sophie. Once I understood Abby’s language, I would tell Abby that it was okay, and she would allow people to pet Sophie. Abby became relaxed, happy, confident.

It worked so well, that I rescued another cockapoo. Abby spent her days using her herding instincts, cutting them (a herder’s term for separating them), grouping them, leading them.  The puppies loved it…they had a big sister that they could jump and play on; and Abby could finally fulfill her purpose.

Since then, I adopt dogs that have no purpose. The Cockapoos, Maltese’s, poodle mixes, Schnoodles, Shih Tzus that I have adopted had only one purpose. To love and be loved…that is something that I can do.

For potential dog owners, it doesn’t mean that you can’t get a specific breed. But think about the original purpose of that breed and make sure that you can fulfill it. A border collie needs to run and herd.  Smarter species (e.g., poodles, Havanese) need to exercise their brains (e.g., learning tricks). Retrievers need to retrieve, but it can be a tennis ball.  If you are adopting a mixed breed, research all its likely breed instincts.  And if you have a dog that is struggling, see if it is able to fulfill its purpose.

Dogs are lucky, they have one purpose their lives. But with us humans, it is a different story.

Our purposes change with circumstances and age. Since my unexpected retirement I have struggled finding my purpose. Before retirement, I had built-in purposes: get an education, work hard, raise my family, work on our marriage, etc.  But now, it is more complicated.  Some retirees have this figured out: some have hobbies that they deferred, some have looked into spirituality, others learn and do new things, others give back.

Dogs are lucky, their purpose is bred into them.

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.

Every morning I go to the dog park.  It is the highlight of my dogs’ day.  Their eyes follow me all morning, looking for that step toward the leashes…it must be something about the way that I walk, but they start to get excited even before I get there.  An excited flurry of circles and barks ensues while I try to put on the leashes and grab the doggie bags…but we eventually get to the dog park, where they spend the entire hour sitting in a lap or under my chair.

It’s always the anticipation, isn’t it?

This year, a new dog visitor arrived, a shy male chihuahua about 4 months old. Very fearful, he hid under his owners’ chairs.  Most people’s instinct is to cuddle the animal to reassure him, but these were experienced dog owners who knew better.  So, they read their newspapers while he cowered under a chair.  And there he sat for a couple of weeks.

They gave him an occasional pet, but otherwise ignored him.  He slowly began to venture from his spot, sniffing a dog and then running back.  Each day he ventured out a little more. Sometimes an older dog would snap at him, but the owners knew not to intervene. Their puppy gradually learned to speak “dog” and understood who wanted to play and who did not.  Fast forward two months and this little guy now greets every dog and person who enters with his waggy tail and excited bark.  He runs around the park letting people pet him and playing with other dogs.

He owns this park.

It reminds me of a similar experience that I had with my daughter.  She had just graduated from college and landed a job in Philadelphia.  She got an apartment with a friend who was going to graduate school at Penn. But it didn’t work out, her friend finished the master’s program early and left my daughter friendless in a strange city carrying the rent.

While our daughter struggled, my husband and I had challenges of our own.  He had been in a serious accident while we were spending a long weekend in Key West and was medevaced to a Miami Hospital where he endured 8 surgeries over a month long stay.  After leaving the hospital, he needed round the clock care requiring us to stay in Key West, 1500 miles away from our struggling daughter.  Then, through no fault of her own, she lost her job.  There she was, out of work, in a strange city with another 6 months on a lease that she couldn’t afford and we couldn’t come to her aid when she needed us the most.  She hesitantly negotiated herself out of the lease and a friend of ours helped her move and gave her a place to stay in New Jersey while she applied for jobs in New York City.

It didn’t go well.  The loss of her first job was a stain on her resume and it took over 6 months and almost 50 job interviews before she finally landed a job.  After securing an apartment, her NYC roommate pulled out at the last minute.  So she had to share her apartment with a stranger.  It was a very difficult year, as her father’s injury hid a grave illness and he died 8 months later.  It was a lot for her to deal with.

Fast forward 6 years, she has become enormously successful.  She confidently leads a global team and is the youngest Senior Director in the company’s history.  After a couple of years, she found a compatible roommate and they have shared an apartment for 3 years.  After the COVID 19 crisis is over, she will be moving to London to lead her team. She is a confident, empathetic, and kind person.

Sometimes we help the most when we don’t help at all.

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.

Black history month is a great way for us to learn about those who have championed the cause against racial injustice in white history obscurity. When I was in school, I was taught nothing about Black history…with the exception that slaves loved being in bondage and happily sang songs as portrayed in Gone with the Wind.

Ugh, how embarrassing.

So I recognize that it is incumbent upon me to learn a more inclusive history.  Each year, I pick someone from Black History and Women’s History to research.

This year I cheated, I chose Ida B Wells, both an important voice for African Americans and a champion of women’s voting rights.

Born into slavery in 1862, she became one of the most renown journalists of her time (very unusual for a person of color) documenting lynching with unabashed bravery.

Always an activist (she was a cofounder of the NAACP), she gained notoriety when she took on the railroads in 1884 for requiring her to give up her (paid) first class seat to move to a less desirable (smoking) car.  When she refused, she was thrown off the train and began her journalism career documenting her treatment and her subsequent lawsuit against the railroad (she lost…in part thanks to a prior Supreme Court ruling).

She began her career as a teacher in Memphis. But after learning about the lynching of two friends, she began chronicling lynching. By shining a light on this barbaric practice, American Northerners and the world could no longer turn a blind eye to Southern depravity.  Not surprisingly, a White mob destroyed her newspaper office and presses.

Prior to her investigative pamphlets, Southern Horrors and The Red Record, Wells documented lynching under an assumed name for the Washington Star.  When her writing was brought to light, she was fired by the Memphis School board and, in fear of her life after the mob destruction, moved to Chicago.

Oh by the way, since she was woman, she did all of this while raising six children.

Not content to just report lynchings, she also analyzed why they occurred. Despite Southern justification, she uncovered that Black economic progress, bi-racial affairs, fear of a Black uprising, and refusal of courageous Black men to accept Jim Crow were the real reasons. She concluded that 25% claimed to be about the “rape of white women.” She shined on bright light on this cruel injustice for the world to witness.

An educator at heart, she also promoted causes that gave all races and nationalities access to libraries and knowledge; understanding that education was power.

She was an outspoken Suffragette.  She educated her African American colleagues on the importance of women’s votes to improve the condition of Black Americans and organized a multi-racial group for suffrage. Her group is considered primarily responsible for the election of the first Black alderman in Chicago (Oscar De Priest).

Her organization traveled to DC to attend the Women’s Suffrage parade in 1913.  However, Southern White Suffragettes threatened a boycott if African American Suffragettes participated.  In an attempt to appease the Southern Suffragettes, organizers asked Ida B. Wells and other Black Suffragettes not to march, knowing that Woodrow Wilson, among others, was no friend to African Americans.

But Ida B Wells was an indomitable force, so, after an initial skirmish (where anti-Suffrage men became violent); she mysteriously ended up at the front of her delegation and marched in the parade.

Ida B Wells was a force against injustice that would never be quashed.

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.

Gardening has been my passion since childhood, it has fed me through life’s joys and tragedies.  It nurtured my marriage, kept me alive when I no longer wanted to be part of this world, and nudged me to return.

Raised on a Caroline County farm, I found being outside in the dirt was a place where I could relax and focus on the task at hand.  I found solace working the soil, kneading the wet earth, or watching the dry dust sift through my fingers.  Tasks had a beginning and an end.  At the end I could look back at my work…a row of seeds planted, or seedlings transplanted…waiting for them to grow.  I instinctively learned about my silent pact with the earth…I will put it here and you will nourish it. And after we have tended it together, we will have something that will feed us either substantively or visually; and then we will start the cycle all over again.

I brought a love of that communion wherever I went.  In every yard, I built a garden, not always a successful one; but one that began with promise and imagination.  I would tend it, remove the unwanted weeds, water it during droughts, there was always something to do.  It was partnership, of interconnected roles; like enduring partnerships, sometimes we fought, sometimes we failed, sometimes we succeeded, sometimes we amazed, but always be together. I have learned that nature is not a one-way street, but a relationship that is always teaching.

I have been an organic gardener from the beginning, not because I was necessarily “woke,” but I recognized I was a temporary steward, and I did not have the right to leave a permanent blemish on the environment. Also, I figured that as a rather inept gardener, I could kill plants without the aid of chemicals.

A garden is about love. A love for beauty, a love for the outdoor miracle our planet provides, a love for the sounds, a love of being enveloped in soft green plants and rustling bushes and trees, a love of sharing the moments that a garden gives.

So fellow gardeners, it is time.  Time to get out those magazines, the books, the seed catalogs, get ideas and local plants from friends and garden clubs.  Time to plan, this is going to be the year!

Time to hope for rain at just the right time, a cool, wet spring, a gradual mild, summer with weekly thunderstorms; a mild autumn where our plants gracefully return to the earth; and a winter where our perennials, trees, and bushes can find safe harbor.

Everything is possible at this moment!

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.

Vice President-Elect Harris wore a white pantsuit on the night that she and Joe Biden celebrated their victory.  She wore it to recognize the 72 years that Suffragettes worked, organized, lobbied, were incarcerated, marched, demonstrated, and even participated in hunger strikes so that women could vote.  Many Suffragettes did not live long enough to vote.  To honor Susan B. Anthony, on every election day, voters paste their “I Voted” stickers on her gravestone in Rochester NY.

As I cheered Vice President Elect Harris’s victory, I wondered how many other amendments had paved the way for that night.

With the exception of President Obama, all presidents and vice presidents met the framers’ original intentions of what a leader should be…white and male (and often, privileged).

Kamala Harris’s victory reminded me of my favorite quote by Sir Isaac Newton.

“If I can see far, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.”

Many amendments to the Constitution were necessary for her to be up on that podium. The most important amendments were the 15th and the 19th.  The 15th gave Black men the right to vote (or more specifically, prohibited states from refusing voting rights based on race) and the 19th amendment gave female US citizens the right to vote.

The journey to expand voting rights began shortly after the Constitution was ratified.  The Abolitionist movement officially began in 1830.  It would take a Civil War to pass the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments.  The 13th amendment abolished slavery, the 14th amendment gave citizenship to all born in the United States, and the 15th amendment prohibited states from denying voting rights based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Women’s advocates, who worked tirelessly to end slavery, expected to be rewarded with a voting rights amendment that included gender as well.  However, Abolitionists were afraid that adding gender was too controversial and they asked Suffragettes to “stand down.”  Frederick Douglass, a staunch supporter of women’s voting rights, finally capitulated when he recognized that adding sex could prevent the passage of the 15th amendment.  The Suffragettes were angry and bitterly disappointed.

As disheartened as they were, even they would not have imagined that women would have to wait another 53 years before the 19th amendment granting them the right to vote would be passed. In fact, by the time the 19^th amendment was ratified, 20 states allowed women to vote.

Biden/Harris won 57% of the female vote.

There were other amendments that aided Biden/Harris in the 2020 Presidential election.  The 24th amendment abolished poll tax, allowing Black Americans to vote freely.

Biden/Harris won 87% of the Black American vote.

The 26^th amendment gave 18-year-olds the right to vote.

Two thirds of those under 24 voted for Biden/Harris.

The 23^rd amendment gave the District of Columbia Electoral College representation.

92% of DC’s residents voted for Biden/Harris, giving them 3 Electoral College votes.

The road to Vice President Kamala Harris’s election began long before her immigrant parents were born.  Thousands of people dedicated their lives, especially in the Abolition and Suffrage Movements, to extend voting rights.

But you know who else needs to be celebrated?  The white male voters. Their willingness to share their privileges and power to those not represented created a broader, deeper, and richer America. These men recognized that a rising tide raises all boats. It can be argued that their foresight saved the Constitution in 2020. 61% of white men voted for Trump, I am convinced that those voters could not have envisioned a failed coup attempt to overturn the election and the Constitution.

When Kamala Harris strode onto the podium in her white pantsuit, she was saluting all those who worked tirelessly to give her this opportunity and, equally important, those, like her husband, who were willing to share it.

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.

Until now, the vaccine rollout in America has been a nightmare. In Florida it has been an embarrassment. (You might remember my column about getting on a list with the Health Department to get a COVID 19 vaccine appointment in Florida.  It turned out that list was meaningless.)

Talbot County has recently vaccinated a number of its citizens. Its Tuesday briefing provided good information about access, but I could feel the frustration of Talbot citizens trying to get the vaccine.

But at least Maryland is attempting to distribute the vaccine fairly, then there is Florida.

To date, 39,000 non-Florida residents have been vaccinated.  That’s right, 39,000!  39,000 would have vaccinated all this county’s senior citizens, educational, and essential workers; and all of Talbot County!  But for reasons that we can only surmise, Florida became a popular vaccination destination for wealthy Argentinians, Canadian residents, and who knows who else (with Uncle Sam footing the bill).  Just recently, Florida restricted the vaccine to residents and “snow birds.”

In my Florida county, vaccines have been distributed by privilege.  An exclusive country club and gated community in Key Largo, Ocean Reef, mysteriously vaccinated 1200 residents (which is incredible given that many are International residents, and all Key West was given fewer than 1300 total doses).  Florida is investigating how they “jumped the line.”

In Key West, the Health Department distributed the vaccines to their friends and relatives.  There is still no roadmap for nonaffiliated qualified residents to receive the vaccine.  Vaccine distribution to the privileged has been reported everywhere.  Houston and other states are investigating “International Vaccine Vacations” and other states report unqualified people being vaccinated due to “connections.”

Another frustration for me has been watching people get vaccinated on TV as if they are providing a public service.  Vice President Pence, Vice President Harris, and President Biden took a leadership position by doing so.  But seriously, local leaders, celebrities, reporters, give me a break.  I would get on TV in a bathing suit if I could get the vaccine.  That would be a true “profile in courage.”

Back to Florida. Publix (a regional grocery store and pharmacy chain) is now distributing COVID 19 vaccines throughout Florida (to those over 65). This is how it works. At 6 a.m. on a pre-announced date, the Publix COVID 19 appointment website goes live.  To prevent the system from crashing, a limited number of users are allowed access.  The rest of us wait in the queue, hoping that we will be able to get into the site before all the appointments have been filled (usually by 8:30 a.m.). Most of us do not get in (there are over 250,000 people waiting), but the website announces the next date that appointments will be available. When the next date arrives, we do it all over again.

On one of these dates, I got in.  The system was cumbersome.  I selected an appointment by county and then filled in two pages of medical data.  By the time I finished and clicked the “submit” button, the appointment had been booked by someone who was quicker or got access before I did, and I had to select another appointment date, re-enter the medical data and click “submit.”  That appointment, too, was taken. Soon, all the appointments in my county had been filled, but I found an appointment 5 ½ hours away.  I grabbed it.

One of the advantages of this system is that anyone with an Internet connection can wait in the queue.  So elderly citizens who are not computer savvy can get their friends and relatives to book an appointment. I was able to make appointments for others who could not navigate the system.

Acme recently announced that they will be distributing vaccines and I suspect that they will use a similar system. So set your alarms and find someone with an Internet connection who is willing to help.

It is chaotic, but it is also fair.  Getting into the system is like winning the lottery.  No special privileges needed, just tenacity and good fortune.

According to the Biden administration, national pharmacies won’t be able to distribute vaccines before the end of February.  I wish that they could get them sooner.  In remote, underserved areas there need to be alternatives, but in most areas, allowing pharmacies to distribute the vaccines would benefit the economy, reduce cost, make it a fair system, and help overworked, dedicated local Health Departments.

Before expending the effort to educate those who don’t want the vaccine, I recommend that we start with the millions of people who do. Once they see the benefits and the minimal side effects, they will be less resistant.  And if vaccinations are required to live in a post-COVID 19-world, people will comply.

The vaccine rollout has been badly mismanaged.  Operation Warp Speed was only warped.  But let’s not try to “boil the ocean”.  Let’s help our Health Departments by taking advantage of one of America’s strengths, our businesses.  In my limited experience, they are ready, willing, and able.

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.

Watching the January 6th insurrection was like watching a train wreck. It was hard to look away, but in the end, all that I could see was the wreckage.

Why do we believe that the election was stolen and other conspiracy theories?

We have several inherent biases that make us susceptible.

One is our old friend and nemesis, confirmation bias, where we form an opinion and gather facts to prove it.  For example, when Donald Trump was elected in 2016, I was unable to reconcile how someone who lost the election by almost three million votes could win; so I became convinced Russians had successfully injected themselves into the elections in a few key districts. Why?  I had such a negative opinion of Donald Trump it was impossible for me to believe that people would vote for him.  Similarly, in the 2020 election, it was inconceivable to ardent Trump supporters that he would not be re-elected, so they became convinced that the only explanation was wide-scale voter fraud.

We share other biases as well.  Proportionality bias happens when an event is so significant that a simple explanation does not seem possible, such as, the death of Lady Diana.  It was too catastrophic to believe that her death was merely caused by an inebriated driver chased by relentless photographers.  We looked to coincidences and then made our next error. Confusing correlation with causation.  We looked for anomalies that were correlated with the event (for example, the unknown Fiat) and assumed that they were causal. But correlation is not causation.

The well-known conspiracy theory about Roswell centers on the belief that an alien spaceship crashed into the desert in 1947.  Seventy years later there is no physical data, but there are eyewitness accounts. The heavy-handed treatment and misinformation by the military added to fuel to the conspiracy theory.  In the 1990s, the Air Force researched the incident and concluded that a top-secret nuclear test surveillance balloon from Project Mogul containing test dummies crashed at the site. But Ufologists remain unconvinced.

For the Roswell incident to occur there must be confirmation bias (the belief that there are extraterrestrials) and another phenomenon, the inability to prove the null hypothesis.

Put simply, when conducting an experiment, there is a treatment group and a placebo group.  The null hypothesis states that there is no difference between the two groups. If there are statistically significant differences between the two groups, then we reject the null hypothesis, and conclude that the treatment had an impact.  But if there are no differences there could be other reasons unrelated to the treatment for no differences.

No one has discovered alien materials from the Roswell crash site. Yet, it is impossible to “prove” the null hypothesis (that there was no alien spaceship crash) because there are other explanations that those materials have not been found (e.g., the Government removed all the materials, they disintegrated over time). The null hypothesis that there was no alien crash can never be proven.

In the case of the 2020 Presidential election, it is impossible to prove that there was no fraud, because it is the null hypothesis.  However, there is data from over 50 rejected lawsuits and the inability of the mass effort to uncover substantial fraud  support the conclusion that this was a fair election.

Many conspiracies have at their heart a good vs. evil story (with the proponent’s side being “good”). Those who listen to QAnon fabrications believe that Democrats are child molesters or socialists (evil), while they are good Christians who want to take back the government.

Then there are the “Uncle Know-it-Alls.”  You know the guy, who speaks with absolute certainty and knows virtually nothing?  So, what do you do when “Uncle Know it All” tells you that JFK Jr. is alive and attends Trump’s rallies?

And finally, there is the “Need to be Right.”  People who suffer from this (and I am a recovering NTBR’r), just cannot accept that they could be wrong.

Sadly, the most important casualty of conspiracy theories are facts.  We no longer have the media filter that we had 40 years ago (local press, national news). Biased and inaccurate information is promoted without consequence…a lie repeated often enough becomes a “fact.”

Critical thinking is crucial to stopping the spread of conspiracy theories.  For example, why would Democrats decide to eschew basic human values and engage in child molestation?  How could Russia have invaded our decentralized voting system?  How could a 7 million vote differential be overcome?  Why has no valid evidence for wide scale voter fraud been uncovered, despite millions of dollars devoted to the cause?

We must find some way to ensure that the press does not stoke conspiracy theories.  For example, Fox News segments gave airtime to “Stop the Steal” demonstrations and baseless claims by politicians who frankly knew better.  Some anchors rebutted these speakers, but others allowed it unchecked.

“Those outlets that propagate lies to their audience have unleashed insidious and uncontrollable forces that will be with us for years,” said James Murdoch (who has broken with the family over Fox News content). “I hope that those people who didn’t think it was that dangerous now understand, and that they stop.”

Social media platforms have finally taken a stand against the spread of misinformation.  But is it too late?

Somehow, we must find a way to assign consequences to the spreading of misinformation.  It doesn’t mean that we won’t have different perspectives, but we will disagree using the same facts.

I wish I knew the answer, but we do know how dangerous it can be.  Historians have proven that misinformation is the first step to totalitarianism, and then, as we saw last week, insurrection.

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.

I am still angry over the events of January 6th.  I am angry at the shameful behavior of Eastern Shore’s Delegate in Congress and others who aided, abetted, and fed this insurrection.

But my greatest outrage is reserved for those who failed to protect Congress and their own employees.

I am referring to the utter failure of the Capitol Police, Pentagon, Homeland Security, and other law enforcement agencies as well as those politicians and insiders who abetted this mob.

Watching security officers courageously trying to save our leaders from mob violence despite being understaffed, underprepared, and under-armed was heart wrenching.

Why did the Capitol police leadership refuse assistance prior to and during the incident?  How could they have ignored the warnings from agencies and watch groups about the impending violence?

Several Capitol police officers report that some insurgents flashed police badges and armed forces IDs to get into the building. There are videos of some security officers inexplicably letting the terrorists in the Capitol building, removing barriers, failing to check for weapons, and escorting rioters through the Capitol. A policeman took selfies.  Some terrorists commented that they knew which security officials would help them.

And who can forget watching the rioters jubilantly leaving the Capitol with one even being aided by police walking down the steps?  She clearly had no difficulty going up them. These lawbreakers reported that many police wished them well and “were on our side.” The insurgents “high fived” and celebrated their insurrection until two hours after curfew when the police finally required them to leave.

It reminded me of Billy Crystal’s character’s line in The Princess Bride. “Have fun storming the castle.”

Why were these insurgents not arrested as they exited the building?

As Americans, typically our next move is blame and punishment. Sadly, I am not immune.

The FBI and other law enforcement agencies are hunting down these thugs, which is much more expensive and difficult than had they already been in custody.

Over time any complicity or collusion will be exposed; and patience, not conspiracy theories, is needed.  But there is blood on the hands of all of those who failed to protect Congress and their own officers.

The images of the understaffed, vulnerable, undersupplied, courageous officers who risked their lives to protect our democracy are indelibly etched; as are images of those who stood guard over Congress with weapons drawn.  The FBI hinted that there will be more information about what these brave officers did during the insurrection.

These officers are the heroes.  They are the true patriots.

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.

I got a call in Key West yesterday. It went something like this.

“Hurry down to Simonton Street, they are signing up senior citizens to get on a list for a vaccine appointment.”

“What? Where? Are you sure?”

“Yes, just heard about it from my husband on the golf course.  Call your friends.”

I called my friends, who called their friends.

Within hours, people were racing to the parking lot to give their name, phone number and birthdate.

And that is how we in Key West found out how to get on the list for an appointment for the COVID 19 vaccine.  No notifications, just good old telephone tag.

Up until yesterday, we had been searching fruitlessly for any information.  Our county did not participate in the online website (which crashed repeatedly), the health line number went to a voice mail that was not returned. Our doctors didn’t know. The local and chain pharmacies didn’t know. So we waited, and if not for that call, I would never have known.

Nationally, only 28% of the vaccines that have been distributed have been administered.

Surprised?

The experts aren’t.

The plan to leave it up to individual states, counties, towns, and townships was a system designed to fail.  Without a nationally coordinated effort, an untrained, understaffed, beleaguered, and besieged local officials could only do the best that they could.

Maryland is effectively keeping its residents informed, but other states, well…

So, the 20 million people who were supposed to be vaccinated by now is less than 5 million.  Some are panicking as the COVID crisis gets worse and conditions are becoming dire.

The good news, the new President has already developed a desperately needed nationally coordinated plan.  There will be hiccups, of course, but for those of us who remain vigilant, help is on the way.

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.