The neo-Confederate “Talbot Boys” statue in front of the Talbot County courthouse in Easton, Md., was dedicated in 1916, a half-century after Lee’s surrender to Grant and in the middle of the virulent Jim Crow era.

Atop its granite pedestal, the statue depicts a young Caucasian soldier with “C.S.A.” on his belt buckle. With truculence, he grips a battle flag that’s clearly the secessionist Stars-and-Bars. The pedestal proclaims, “To the Talbot Boys / 1861-1865 / C.S.A.,” and memorializes local men who enlisted in the Confederate army to defend slavery.

It’s just one of many such statues erected in the early 1900s to glorify the Confederacy 50 years after Appomattox. Manufactured by the W.H. Mullins Co. of Salem, Ohio. Easton’s statue had an identical, Mullins-made twin in Lake Charles, La., until that one toppled during a hurricane. That twin of Talbot’s was entitled “The South’s Defenders,” leaving no doubt as to the fervent intent of the Louisianans who put it up.

As the banner at the Juneteenth demonstration at the Easton courthouse succinctly stated, the Talbot Boys were “TRAITORS TO OUR NATION.” American citizens all, they volunteered to fight for the Confederate States of America against the United States of America. They betrayed our nation, pure and simple.

Local apologists for their county’s testimonial to white supremacy and chattel slavery are quick to fire up the gas lamps. You just don’t understand, they say. You just haven’t been taught the true history of this statue. You need an explanation.

They claim that in 1913, a second monument was also planned to honor the Talbot citizens who were loyal to their nation and who fought for the Union. But, they say, funds for this were never raised. They also claim they want to now build a pro-Union monument and erect it on the courthouse grounds, as if so doing would somehow achieve moral equivalency between the CSA and the USA, between slavery and freedom.

Local apologists also propose that a county-wide referendum should be conducted, as if a majority vote to preserve the monument would magically render the South’s slavery and the Confederacy’s treason somehow moral and righteous.

Citing the ACLU’s current lawsuit to have the statue removed, apologists even raise this phantasmic boogeyman, that a “national pressure group will come in to take over local government.” What nonsense!

Our nation is 21 years into the 21st Century. We are past 200 years of slavery and past 100 years of racial segregation. Many Americans are taking steps to ensure our nation doesn’t return to those eras, but instead moves forward to forge a new one. No longer a Black versus White argument, the new civil rights movement has clearly become Blacks-and-Whites-together against those Whites who just don’t want to listen.

Millions of Americans have family going back to the Civil War era. Many have forebears who fought in the war. I am one; two great-great uncles of mine served in the Union Army.

A traitor from Talbot County could have taken aim many times at Capt. May Stacey, at Gaines Mills, or Antietam, or Spotsylvania Courthouse, or Five Forks. My Uncle May’s war diary and letters have been passed down; he fought as a U.S. regular in those battles and others, and by luck and pluck survived the war.

And Lt. Col. Joseph Curtis’ voluminous letters to his mother, Julia Bowen Curtis, my great-great grandmother, have also been preserved. Uncle Joe led his Rhode Island troops in battle at Roanoke Island and at Antietam. It could have been a traitor from Talbot County who shot him off his horse, dead as he rallied his troops through Fredericksburg.

Talbot County’s controversy over its rebel statue is part of the national debate over Confederate relics, a war which the “Lost Cause” is clearly losing again. Monuments such as the Talbot Boys are being removed, one by one, state after state, including Maryland.

State flags have been altered to excise the “Stars and Bars” motif, and schools, streets, and military bases are being renamed. This past winter, Maryland’s General Assembly voted to deep-six “Maryland, My Maryland” as the state song (it attacked Abe Lincoln). Governor Hogan has signed it.

In support of removing the Talbot Boys statue, Maryland’s Sen. Chris J. Van Hollen said, “We have an obligation to build a more perfect union, not honor those who fought to dissolve it.”

Easton’s courthouse lawn — which once served as an auction pen for enslaved people — may soon witness the decamping of the Talbot Boys.

Gren Whitman has been a leader in neighborhood, umbrella, public interest, and political groups and committees, and worked for civil rights and anti-war organizations. He is now retired and lives in Rock Hall, MD. 

Is it because I’m and old guy—89 pushing 90 —or have the Lords of Language sneaked some things past me, filling daily speech with so many phrases I don’t recall hearing, even a few years ago. 

I am fascinated by new, popular words and phrases that appear with great frequency on the tube, in print media and on digital platforms.  

A recent headline in a financial journal hit me right between the eyes. In big, black, bold type the headline proclaimed “Meme Stock Rally Resumes.” What!?

I know what a stock is but a meme stock?  Mr. Webster says a meme is “an idea, behavior, style or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture.”  Today that spreading is enhanced by social media. So it follows that stocks that are highly touted on social media are Meme Stocks. Voila!

And then there is a meme called “ghosting.”  Really? You bet. The Urban Dictionary, a cool version of Mr. Webster’s book, says ghosting, among other things, is “The act of suddenly ceasing all forms of communication with someone the subject is dating but no longer wishes to date.”  Back in the day a young lady wishing to break up with her boyfriend had the courtesy to ghost him by writing a “Dear John” letter. More recently she may have consulted Paul Simon’s great tune, “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover.”

Have you researched a topic lately, examined a subject carefully?  Then you must have taken a “deep dive” into a particular subject.  Folks seem to be deep diving all over the place these days.  Used to be a term for a daring plunge into the Bay. 

On the other hand, if one does not wish to dive deeply there is always the possibility of “unpacking” something, or getting “into the weeds” to discover more about a subject.  

Now if you still have not been able to gain all the information you want you can probe even more deeply by “drilling down.”   But the phrase conjures up the none too pleasant sound of a jackhammer at work or perhaps a visit to the dentist.  Not good. 

Some other things we are doing these days:

We all seem to be “on a journey.”  Not sure where we are going or when we will return, but there we are.

We no longer write, call or contact someone. We “reach out.” Or, if we are anxious to receive a prompt reply, we can up the volume and give a “shout out.”

Have you noticed how many times the phrases “lean in” or “leaning in” come up these days?  Seems to have several definitions: “To make an effort, or work hard, show determination or embrace or experience something fully.”   

And how about “pivot” or “pivoting?”  How often have we heard pubic officials or tv commentators use these words during the pandemic?   We never changed course; we always “pivoted.”  

Then there are tropes.  I don’t recall hearing about tropes when I was a kid  It’s a figure of speech that moves the meaning of a phrase from literal to figurative. One trope we all know is “Take time to smell the roses.”

When a person is hired for a new job these days they are not introduced to the company. Nor do they go through an orientation as they once did. Today they are “onboarded.”  As in Welcome Aboard, I guess.

Let’s wind up this venture into some current phrases with a homework assignment. 

“23 Skidoo” was a popular saying in the 1920s. There is a good story associated with it.  Just pivot, do a deep dive, or maybe reach out to a friend or Mr. Google to learn more about it. 

Ross Jones is a former vice president and secretary emeritus of The Johns Hopkins University. He joined the University in 1961 as assistant to President Milton S. Eisenhower. A 1953 Johns Hopkins graduate, he later earned a Master’s Degree at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.

On June 17, 2021, President Biden signed into law Congressional legislation establishing June 19, “Juneteenth”, as an annual national holiday. It commemorates Union General Gordon Granger’s 6/19/1865 issuance of General Order #3, declaring that “All slaves (in Texas) are free”. Fourteen House Republicans voted against Juneteenth, mirroring earlier, similar opposition.

President Reagan’s 1983 proposal that the country celebrates Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday every January, was not supported by some Senate Republicans. Nonetheless, the date was successfully added to America’s list of official holidays. Some states refused to recognize it until 2000. However, Mississippi and Louisiana were alone, in merging MLK and Robert E. Lee Day.

Juneteenth has been celebrated for many, many years largely by African American communities in different states, following their own local traditions. 2021 marks the first time the commemoration has gone national. Unfortunately, the 21st Century’s strange domestic political fragmentation leaves the reaction of the 23 states totally controlled by the Republicans, unknown.

The fact there is any doubt, 158 years after the Emancipation Proclamation and 156 after the ratification of the 13th Amendment, underscores the reality that racial equality in America is a work in progress. This point was painfully reinforced on May 31st, 2021 when the US celebrated Memorial Day, while also noting the centenary of the Tulsa Massacre of some 300 Blacks by whites.

The United States has lived through eighteen months of tragedy and trauma caused by a deadly pandemic (over 600,000 died), continuing murders of African Americans by white police, peaking on May 25, 2020, when a white officer knelt on the neck of a Black man, George Floyd, suffocating him. A bystander’s video went globally viral.

Outraged Black and white Americans demonstrated peacefully in cities across the country, attracting the attention of white supremacists and similarly disposed armed militias. The result was more death, injury, and destruction. The Trump Administration deployed anonymous federal law enforcement agents, aggravating the violence.

And then on January 6, 2021, thousands of Trump supporters rose in insurrection to block Congresses’ ceremonial confirmation that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were the new President and Vice President of the United States.. With confederate flags flying, thousands of Trump supporters invaded the US Capitol. Five people died and over 150 police officers were hospitalized. Despite the assault, the winners of the 2020 election were announced.

All Americans should loudly celebrate and enjoy their newest national holiday. However, in the weeks and months to come, no one should believe that June 19th represents the date when slavery’s legacy has disappeared from the United States. It has not.

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.

Some Republican leaders are quietly concerned that the Big Lie and Trump Devotion may not be enough to regain majorities in the House and Senate in 2022 and the White House in 2024. Without this total national political dominance, their members in Congress and their counterparts in the states, are unlikely to achieve their long-term strategic goal, i.e. a one party, authoritarian-leaning federal system. It’s possible such a government can still maintain the patina of a representative democracy. The past four years illustrated how it can be done, but there was insufficient Republican control of state electoral mechanisms in 2020, to guarantee desired results. The Party is now actively engaged in solving that problem. 

The Republican electoral strategy, aimed mostly at state level, consists of 6 major  tactical benchmarks: 

• Purge Party leaders who don’t accept the Big Lie and/or Trump Devotion, e.g. Liz Cheney. 

• Take advantage of the decadenal census to gerrymander Democrats out of likely electoral wins..

• Oppose the nomination and election of RINOs, i.e. reasonable/ rational people, at both national and local levels.

• Remove/eviscerate state/county Republican election officials who did their sworn duty in 2020.

• .Amend state election laws to hinder or intimidate poor or minority voters.

• Amend state procedural regulations re ballot initiatives to make it very difficult to manage. 

The reason why they are focusing their current efforts at the state level is simple, that’s where their political power is centered. The latest data (12/2020):  23 states are totally controlled (both governor and legislature) by Republicans (46%), 15 by Democrats  (31%), while Republicans control 30 state legislatures (61%) and Democrats 18 (38%).  

A number of Republican dominated state legislatures have already proposed 361 restrictive voting bills, many are being challenged in the courts.  The following is a sample of actions taken in  8 states.

• Arizona: Purge current list of those who would automatically receive mail-in ballots.

  Arkansas: 

• Absentee ballots must be returned by Friday before election day (was on election day).
• Expanded powers of partisan election commissions over workers and volunteers

  Florida:

• Added more identification requirements for those voting by mail.
• Restricts hours for drop boxes by requiring them to be staffed by election workers.

  Georgia:

• If mailing in ballot, must satisfy new identification requirement.  
• Number of drop boxes significantly reduced.
• Secretary of State no longer supervises elections; chair is now a legislature appointed partisan.
  
  Iowa:

• Shortened period to request and return mail-in ballots.
• Reduced number of drop boxes.
• Shortened hours polling places are open.
• Prohibits any third party from helping voters fill out,or mail, absentee ballots.

• Kansas:
• Prohibits state judiciary or executive branches from changing election laws – only legislature.
• More limits on mail-in voting; 3rd parties are only allowed to submit max of 10.

  Montana: 

• Prohibited from registering to vote on Election Day.
• Students no longer allowed to use student IDs to vote. Need 2nd. ID.

  Wyoming: If individuals vote in person, must show ID. Name on list no longer enough.

Today’s sad reality, particularly for Americans who recall US politics 30 – 40 years ago, is that the proud Grand Old Party no longer exists.  Regardless of your party affiliation, those who support our representative democracy, must hope and facilitate its return to the conservative principles, values and governing platforms it espoused for most of the past 167 years.  

Today the GOP must be understood for what it is, a movement dedicated to regaining total political power at the Federal level and prepared to use whatever means are required to achieve this goal..  

Art. I, Sec. 4 of the Constitution gives initial authority to prescribe “… the times, places and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives in each state by the legislature thereof, but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing senators.“ 

Following the Civil War, the 15th Amendment was added to the Constitution: “The rights of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race,color, or previous condition of servitude.”

The “Republicans” enjoy an advantage at the state level and are making use of their greater legislative authority to , “deny or abridge” the voting rights of minority citizens of the United States.

We must not allow this to happen.

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.

Shootings, kidnappings, murders, cyberattacks.  On a typical day, the news can be gruesome and discouraging. But today, as I was cycling along the Eastern Shore’s wonderful bike lanes, I started to think about some good things that have occurred in recent years. Here are just a few.

A Cleaner America.  As a child, I remember riding in the backseat of my parents’ Dodge and noticing trash along the highways. Today that is much less the case. In fact, when biking, I frequently see people picking up other people’s trash and disposing it. Although not perfect, our parks and roads are much less littered than they were in times past. 

A Commitment to Recycling. In every city I visit, I see diligent people recycling paper, plastics, etc. We’ve come a long way on that front. Clearly, we still have a long way to go, but we are making progress. Plus, there is a welcome movement to move away from plastic bags, Styrofoam cups and containers, unnecessary packaging and other single-use items.  

Bike Lanes. The U.S. has more and more bike lanes, and I say that’s a good thing. On my last international trip before the pandemic, I went to Amsterdam. I could not believe how many people bike everywhere. They bike to trains, to offices, to markets, to churches—families bike together. It appears everyone has a bike. Biking is growing in popularity across the U.S. Many cities are building more accessible bike lanes and providing racks for bike parking. Some cities even provide opportunities to rent bikes and drop them off at other destinations.

Increased Connectivity. It wasn’t all that long ago, that I would read about a book in the NY Times Book Review and then wait until I drove to a bookstore or library to access it. Today, I can read a review and order the book on my iPad in a matter of seconds. It’s the best thing ever. Not just that, but it’s so easy to access information now. The other day I had forgotten who George McGovern’s running mate was in 1972. Within seconds, I Googled the info and said, “Oh yeah, first he picked Eagleton, and then Shriver”. We take all this access for granted. Some may say we are too connected, and they have a point. But think how lucky we are to have access to the The Spy each day so we can stay informed about local goings on. And though many of us are “Zoomed” out, it has been incredible how much work has gotten done remotely during this past pandemic year. 

Organic Foods. Over the last decade, there is much more emphasis on reducing pesticides and additives in foods. These organic foods are still more expensive, but innovative people are finding ways to make these foods more available at more reasonable prices. Farmers’ markets—including Easton’s and other Eastern Shore towns–are more popular than ever and for many there is a return to growing their own vegetables and home cooking with fresh local ingredients. This farm-to-table movement is gaining traction with creativity in offerings spawning wonderful new cottage industries. 

Medical advancements. We still have a long way to go to cure cancer and other diseases. But progress is being made. Substantial gains have been made to identify diseases earlier, treat them, and take precautionary preventative steps to alleviate many diseases from occurring. In the last week alone, there have been breakthroughs on treatments for prostate cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Additional medical breakthroughs may be just around the corner. In his new book The Code Breaker, Walter Isaacson discusses the discovery of gene editing—a technology that could help eradicate cancer, heart disease and a host of other ailments. On the other hand, so far progress has been disappointingly slow regarding addiction and mental illness, although gene editing holds some promise there as well. 

Exercise. Many more Americans are focusing on the importance of exercise. And it’s easier than ever to make that happen. Not everyone can afford a Peloton or similar device, but for those who can, it has never been easier to access strength, cardio, yoga, meditation, spinning classes and more. Others are running, power walking, swimming, kayaking, biking, etc. It’s a delight to see an active, energetic America.

Cleaner Waters. We still have issues across the U.S. with red tides, bacteria in the water, Flint, Michigan water types of disasters, etc. However, there has been progress on this front. The Chesapeake is cleaner than it was 10 years ago. One study from the Chesapeake Bay Program indicated that about 42 percent of the bay and its tidal tributaries recently met clean water standards.  And thanks to the efforts of several ecological associations, the water quality in many rivers, lakes, and streams across the U.S. has improved.

Smoking. Cigarette smoking has reached an all-time low. Slightly more than 13 percent of Americans smoke – a decline of approximately two- thirds in the more than 50 years since the first Surgeon General’s report warned of the dangers of smoking. Still nearly 38 million Americans smoke every day. And smoking remains the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States. 

Hybrids. In recent years, we have been introduced to hybrid cars, bikes and even boats. This means less reliance on fossil fuels, and, in the case of bikes, more flexibility and, for boats, less noise pollution. Hybrid cars, of course, are the stepping stone to completely electric cars. I see more of them on the road and at charging stations every day.  In a somewhat tangential aside, let’s not forget the invention of the hybrid dog which meant more choices for hypoallergenic dogs. My niece who has cystic fibrosis now has a hybrid hypoallergenic dog as a pet—yet another breakthrough. (I, of course, can’t say enough good things about my goldendoodle Lucca—perhaps the best dog in the history of best dogs.)   

Endangered Species. We have made substantial progress in saving endangered species. The U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) is the most effective way to protect at-risk species from extinction. Currently 99 percent of the species on the list have avoided extinction. The best way to protect these species is to protect the places where they live. We are doing a better job at that as well.

Democracy. It’s hard to believe I’m touting democracy as an accomplishment during these turbulent times. But let’s remember that more Americans voted in the 2020 election—two-thirds of the voting eligible population—than in any other in 120 years. That says something.  Let’s hope more and more people continue this trend so that their voices can be heard. The key to strengthening our democracy is having more people vote—not fewer.

Racial Understanding.  Finally, although there has been considerable racial unrest in this country, there has also been an increase in understanding the various challenges this country faces from a race perspective. It has been heartening to see people of all races fighting for racial equality and justice and supporting efforts to ensure that racial equity improves in the U.S. 

Thomas Edison once said, “Restlessness and discontent are the necessities of progress.”  I agree. Still, at times it’s satisfying to pause and reflect on just how far we’ve come—and then remember how much more there is to do.  

Maria Grant was principal-in-charge of the Federal human capital practice of an international consulting firm. Today she focuses on writing, reading, piano, gardening, nature, biking, and kayaking.

Consider two aspects of racism, biology and psychology. Biology first.

We humans, in taxonomy, are in the Eukaryota domain, Animalia kingdom, Chordata phylum, Mammilia class, Primate order, Hominidae family, Homo genus, and Sapiens species.

There are no subspecies of Homo sapiens. While it is true that both gene “expression” (genotype) and environment determine visible characteristics (phenotype), these variations are too superficial to warrant further taxonomic refinement. People are people. That’s it.

Human skin color depends on content of the dark brown pigment called melanin. Melanin has the special ability to block almost 100% of the sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation, the main cause of skin cancers, including particularly dangerous melanomas. Humans who migrated north from Africa nearly two million years ago gradually lost melanin, becoming more fair-skinned. Reduced melanin allowed sunlight to produce more vitamin D in their skin. Today, since most people in northern latitudes wear clothes and get almost all their vitamin D from food or drink, their lighter skin gives them little advantage. As tradeoffs go, melanin’s UV protection in darker skin would seem more advantageous than the bonus of vitamin D production in lighter skin.

No “white” person is truly white; no “black” person is truly black. Human skin color ranges in shades of brown, from light beige to very dark brown. Thus, the expression “people of color” seems a contrived descriptor.

Now to psychology.

Humans, according to famous sociobiologist E.O. Wilson, are among the most social animals on Earth. The other contenders, says he, are ants, termites, and honeybees. We tend to gather with, and be more comfortable in, groups of people who look like us, think like us, are in the same economic class as us, etc. In other words, we are tribal, and that propensity probably goes back thousands of years to the time when groups were trying to survive not just among competing groups, but also with ferocious animals who viewed humans as tasty cuisine. Our history is of violent competition between tribes to occupy the best land, have access to the best food, spread the best religion, live under the best government, or simply determine who has the right to exist. The “winning” tribes have been those with the most adamant purpose, best organization, and superior weaponry.

Today, because of interdependency of economic systems across the globe, the conquering of one country by another is probably (hopefully) a thing of the past. Conflict between competing tribes will continue, but another world war is unlikely because it could easily result in extinction of the human species.

Racism, I’m sorry to say, is not going to quickly subside. That’s because skin color, and any other physical attribute for which one wants claim superiority, is a highly visible indicator of “not me”. One cannot immediately know another’s religion, politics, nationality, ethnicity, social status, or sexual orientation, but skin color is an obvious difference, if difference is what one seeks.

Racism is not a yes/no, either/or thing. We all may be a little racist, but loath to recognize or admit it. I confess I have thoughts at times that could be considered racist. Still, I try to remain vigilant, and push those thoughts away because I know they are irrational and unproductive.

In sum, if we are ever to achieve a true “United States”, much less a united world, racism must become a thing of the past.

Bob Moores retired from Black & Decker/DeWalt in 1999 after 36 years. He was the Director of Cordless Product Development at the time. He holds a mechanical engineering degree from Johns Hopkins University

Many Spy readers probably have no clue about Heaven’s Gate, and that’s OK. It happened in March 1997, so 24 years ago. A quick precis: Heaven’s Gate was a California cult, led by Marshall Applegate. He convinced 47 followers they should wear the same black uniforms, the same brand of new black/white Nike basketball shoes (“Decades”), climb into bunk beds, cover themselves with a purple sheet and commit suicide. 

If they did so, and 39 did, their souls would be transported to a spaceship trailing a nearby comet called Hale-Bopp, and be immediately beamed to heaven. Applegate had selected 8 to remain on Earth to serve as a communication center and to recount their story.   

Fast forward to March 2021, when a poll sponsored by the Public Religion Research Institute, was undertaken. The 5625 American respondents were queried about the degree of their belief in or support for, the QAnon conspiracy theory. It was launched anonymously on social media in 2016-2017 and continues to evolve.  

Just a reminder, QAnon’s storyline is much more complex and considerably more effective than Heaven’s Gate. It asserts that power in the United States is in the hands of a cabal of satan worshiping pedophiles who traffic in children. Moreover, it is the duty of real American patriots, to depose the pedophiles, with violence if necessary, and restore the country’s rightful order. 

One of the more recent extrapolations accepted by a QA scism, holds that a biblical-scale storm will sweep away these evil elites and restore the rightful leaders.

It has generated a large cult following, which the poll measured. Given the small number of respondents, the results only indicate the scale and nothing more. The poll’s political party percentages below are too precise, but believable as one is more a Qanon acolyte than another.

2021 Poll Results: 

15% of Americans believe the basic fact of powerful devil-worshipping pediphiles controlling the US.

14% of Americans fall into the category “QAnon Believers” who accept all the above.

Party Affiliation:
Republican – 25%
Democrats –  7%
Independents – 12%

55% of Republicans fell into a poll category “QAnon Doubters”, i.e. disagreed with most, but didn’t reject..
58% of Democrats were “ QAnon Rejectors”.

The fundamental question is why Heaven’s Gate was dismissed by media and polled America as simply crazy, while  QAnon was not? One believer, armed with a gun invaded a Washington, D.C. Pizza restaurant, to rescue children confined in its basement.  It had no basement and the police removed the believer.

Is the latter accepted by millions and the former by 45 because it’s related to political beliefs, i.e. QAnon arose as something of a supplement to the currently labeled “Big Lie”, that former president Trump actually won reelection, but Democratic fraud stole it? 

Or has QAnon become something of a game with secret codes and special vocabulary and the mystery of Q’s identity and fun to follow

Or is America in the 21st Century considerably more gullible than it was in the 20th. 

Who knows?

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.

Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship last Sunday. At age 50, he is the oldest person to do so. Anthony Hopkins received the Best Actor Oscar award this year for his role in The Father, making him at age 83 the oldest person to receive an Oscar. He edged out Christopher Plummer’s supporting actor win at age 82 in the 2010 film Beginners.  At 77, Joe Biden is the oldest person to be elected president. Donald Trump was 70 when he took office. Ronald Reagan was 77 when he left office. Bob Dylan celebrated his 80th birthday on Monday. Dylan released his 39th album Rough and Rowdy Ways last summer. Janet Yellen is 74 and is the first person in American history to have led the White House Council of Economic Advisors, the Federal Reserve, and the Treasury Department.  Martha Stewart is 79. Dr. Fauci turned 80 last December. Nancy Pelosi is 81. Warren Buffett is 90. So, what is my point?

I am amazed at the energy, grit, determination and talent each of these people displays. In a sense, all of them have used their age to their advantage, giving themselves the benefit of experience and perspective.  

Approximately one-third of Americans are age 50 or older. Yet so much of American culture is focused on youth, looking younger, marketing to young people—90 percent of marketing dollars are targeted to people under 50 even though people over age 50 have substantially more disposable income.  

And for those who doubt that rampant ageism exists in this country, ask anyone over age 50 how difficult it is to find a job. This is true even though studies have repeatedly shown that assumptions about older workers–that they are inflexible, slow, unorganized, difficult, and expensive to train have proven to be false. Instead, studies show that older workers are more committed to their jobs, have less turnover, and less absenteeism than younger workers. They are also less likely to get mired in office politics and more likely to share their knowledge, mentor and coach junior staff, and put issues in their proper perspective.

Vivian Clayton, a geriatric neuropsychologist, developed a definition of wisdom which consists of three key components:  cognition, reflection and compassion. She explains that it takes time to gain insights and perspectives from one’s own knowledge and to use those insights to help others. I think we can all agree that more compassion, kindness and teamwork in the workplace would be a good thing.  

A current phenomenon is the pairing of a younger person with an older person for remarkable results. Think Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga concerts. They were amazing. Lady Gaga beautifully sang Tony Bennett’s classic songs, and Tony Bennett became quite popular with the younger generation. Or Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg. Despite their 30-year age difference, they thoroughly enjoy and appreciate each other’s company and perspectives. And they both have become relevant to the other’s followers. Snoop Dogg once said, “When we come together, it’s a natural combination of love, peace and harmony.”

Studies have shown that such cognitive diversity—that is building teams with a spectrum of ages and experiences—is more likely to produce successful results. Such teams also encourage innovation, freedom to brainstorm without fear, and acceptance of different points of view.  

As Bob Dylan once said: “Ah, I was so much older then; I’m younger than that now.”  Sometimes wisdom comes with the realization that things we were so certain of in our youth must be reexamined with a whole new lens. Age brings this type of wisdom. Let’s embrace it, celebrate it, and mine its potential.

Maria Grant was principal-in-charge of the Federal Human Capital practice of an international consulting firm. Since she retired, she has focused on writing, reading, piano, gardening, kayaking, nature and travel.

.