The Foreign Service Journal, April 2010

A P R I L 2 0 1 0 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 9 be found at www.nasmm.org. The Web site includes a directory to help you find local consultants. The exis- tence of such an outfit underlines how rapidly demographics are shifting in the United States. Many of these consultants appar- ently advise on how to remain in your own home in the golden years, as well as on how to downsize, dispose of ex- cess possessions, select an independent living or assisted living location, and move there. Bill Harrop Ambassador, retired Bethesda, Md. Retirement Living Decisions My compliments to Bill Harrop for his comprehensive and evocative an- swers to the question: “Should We Move to a Senior Living Facility?” Based on my experience moving to a senior living community in Bethesda, Md., almost four years ago, I’d like to add a few comments. First and foremost, families should decide to move when they are still in good physical and mental health to make that decision — i.e., before they find that they must for one reason or another do so. They can then approach the issue with equanimity, deliberately and rationally, without the pressure that physical or mental circumstances might impose. Since there are any number of op- tions available in the Washington area, location for us became an important factor. My wife and I wanted to be close enough to downtown Washing- ton’s cultural facilities — the Ken- nedy Center, theaters, museums — to get there easily while we are still driving or, later, when we need to depend on public transportation. We found to our surprise and relief that we did not have to downsize, a major concern for many. Our apart- ment at Maplewood with its 1,600 square feet is larger than the living space we had in our two-level house. And being in good health, we managed the move ourselves as we had done while in the Foreign Service. It also helped that we sought and re- ceived ample information and advice from the sales management team here regarding living options and costs, in- vestment details and financial possibili- ties. In my first Christmas card after moving, I wrote: “This is the near-par- adise preparing us for the real thing to come!” Enough said. Hans N. Tuch FSO, retired Bethesda, Md. Population Matters In “The Population Bomb Is Still Ticking” (January Speaking Out), Michael Fritz addressed a very serious issue: namely, that “the U.S. has (his- torically) conducted a strong popula- tion assistance program,” but has not had “population reduction as an explicit goal.” He argued his case with reference to global warming but, given wide American popular resistance to “elitist” scientific theory, an even more arrest- ing argument may be the intractable cycle of poverty and crime that accom- panies overpopulation, absent “escape valves” like emigration. Rightly or wrongly, during my For- eign Service career I never got the im- pression that population or family planning issues were particularly high on the U.S. agenda. Maybe my igno- rance, if it was that, was a function of the countries in which I served: China (a target of U.S. opprobrium over its early reliance on abortion to lower pop- ulation growth), the Soviet Union (we had other fish to fry, and its successor state, Russia, faces a declining popula- tion) and Japan (also with a population that is likely to decline). But, I also couldn’t help noticing over the years that U.S. overseas family planning policy was inextricably linked to the domestic theological/political de- bate over access to legal abortion serv- ices and effective birth control vs. ab- stinence “education.” Some post-retirement months in Guatemala introduced me to a country that (along with Haiti) has some of the highest population growth, infant and maternal mortality, and malnutrition, poverty, unemployment, crime and murder rates in the Americas. The link between young populations, crippling underemployment and rampant crimi- nality seemed evident in Guatemala. These factors also induce massive un- sanctioned emigration. As a result, Mexico, itself overpopulated, regularly deports large numbers of undocu- mented Guatemalans. Guatemala hosts scores of well-in- tentioned missionary and nongovern- mental organizations, but few promote reproductive health and family plan- ning. The missionary-oriented lan- guage school I attended included ma- terial on “the myth of overpopulation.” Almost alone in its efforts in Guatemala, WINGS, an NGO led by retired FSO Sue Patterson, is working to promote family planning and repro- ductive health among the disadvan- taged. Information on these issues in Guatemala and this NGO can be found at www.wingsguate.org. Neil Silver FSO, retired McLean, Va. ■ L E T T E R S