LETTERS
licly recognize and support the unsung
heroes and heroines who serve America so well.
Vernessa White-Jackson
Hyattsville, Md.
Remembering Lockerbie
I would like to thank Mitchell Cohn
for his Reflections column in your April
issue about the 20th anniversary of the
Lockerbie tragedy. I arrived at the consulate general in Scotland the following
summer, but my experiences were similar to his.
Emotions were still at high pitch
among the family members of the victims as we started returning the possessions of their loved ones. I listened as
they cried and reminisced, and when
they shouted with anger and frustration.
I remember well the cold, damp police
warehouse in Lockerbie where I spent
hours ticking off personal property on
an inventory for each American passenger. Each one of them was an individual to us. We knew them all by name,
we knew their families, and we knew
what they packed in their suitcases that
fateful day. As Mitch said, there was a
pervasive sadness that surrounded our
work, but sometimes the relationships
that evolved gave us peace.
I still recall the mother of a Syracuse
University student who came to the
warehouse to look for some of her
daughter’s possessions. She was such a
kind person and brought great warmth
and love to the experience. We ended
up exchanging Christmas cards over
the years, until last year, when my card
was returned.
I eventually found out that she had
passed away and, for the first time in
many years, I sat down and cried. I was
crying not just for her, but for everyone
who had been touched by this terrible
event. It broke the heart of everyone
who had to deal with it.
Julie Rethmeier Moyes
FSO
Arlington, Va.
Medical Exams
Having retired 10 years ago, I was
quite surprised to learn that the Office
of Medical Services has stopped performing full examinations prior to overseas transfers (March President’s Views,
“To Your Health”). In 1989, MED’s
exam probably saved the life of my husband, FSO Douglas Van Treeck. Very
early colon cancer was detected, a golf-ball sized mass was removed without
complications and, other than required
screenings every three years, he lives
quite normally. Had he gone to Niger
for two years without treatment, his life
would probably be over by now.
Maybe State has a plan: reduce
MED’s costs and reduce pension payments.
Marie-Elena Van Treeck
FS specialist, retired
Carson City, Nev.
The Freeman Appointment
The discussion of Ambassador
Charles “Chas” Freeman’s withdrawal
from consideration for the position of
chairman of the National Intelligence
Council drew attention to the role of
National Intelligence Estimates in the
formulation of U.S. foreign policy. But
I found Susan Maitra’s analysis in the
April Cybernotes (“Controversy Points
to Foreign Policy Dilemma”) more of
an op-ed than straight news reporting.
The implication was that the neocon-servative cabal did Freeman in.
Regarding the “vitriolic campaign,”
no mention is made of the role of
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.,
and Representative Frank Wolf, R-Va.,
in this short-lived appointment. The
article also does not spell out Amb.
Freeman’s position on the board of the
China National Offshore Oil Corporation and why this matters.
Arthur Green
USIA FSO, retired
Boynton Beach, Fla.
Enjoying FSJ Access
Thanks for making the Journal so
accessible on the Internet. We are
posted overseas and I really enjoy being
able to read current information. The
articles in the March focus, “Going It
Alone,” were timed perfectly because
we, along with many other families, are
beginning to think about the next bidding cycle. We now have a better idea
of how to prepare for and handle a separate assignment.
Renee Atkinson
FS spouse
Embassy Canberra
Any New Ideas?
Some time ago, you published a letter from me which proposed a radical
departure in U.S. relations with Russia.
As I recall, it received no reaction whatsoever (perhaps an indication of its
worth). I reworked my proposal and
sent it to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The reply from one “IK” (Ivan
Knishknif?) was an underwhelming
form letter addressed in a Dostoevsky-an fashion to “Dear Interested Citizen!” Perhaps I need to work harder to
appreciate the utter disdain in which
my suggestion of policy change is held.
Reading the April FSJ, which again
addressed the role of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization and related issues,
I felt that the three authors approached
relations with Moscow in a traditional
fashion. Isn’t there a new idea in our
house? Is everything about adjustments? Is an adversarial relationship,
