The Foreign Service Journal, June 2004

J U N E 2 0 0 4 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 11 L E T T E R S ment matters. For the most part, however, I simply paid my dues to AFGE and never asked them for any help. I found their literature on labor/management matters not espe- cially informative about Foreign Service matters. In 1971, I returned on assignment to the United States. I immediately contacted various storage companies asking that my effects from the respective companies be delivered to my newly purchased residence. All such effects were delivered with the exception of one shipment, from National Capital Storage and Moving Company, which was located in northeast Washington, D.C. The effects I had there contained valuable information on Lusophone Africa and my graduate research materials. Ironically, I had asked if I could send all of these materials to my designat- ed home leave address in Texas, and my request was turned down. It was shocking to learn that the company concerned had gone bankrupt in 1964, two years after my effects had been placed in its care. I was advised that inasmuch as the company had gone bankrupt, my effects had been placed there with no official autho- rization. This was refuted by the vouchers I had showing that during the period from 1964-1970, payments continued to be made to National Capital. I turned to AFGE for assistance. Their response to my request for help was, “We do not elect to handle mat- ters which are exclusively related to Foreign Service personnel.” Given that my effects were valued at over $100,000, I asked them where I could go for assistance. The reply: “Your matter pertains exclusively to the Foreign Service. We do not elect to handle such matters. The over- whelming majority of our members have no problem with storage and moving companies.” I pointed out that I had regularly paid dues and now I wanted something for my dues. My comments were met with silence. AFGE succeeded in making me wholly committed to AFSA. Their lack of care for the Foreign Service upsets me to this day. Roy A. Harrell, Jr. AFSA Lifetime Member FSO, retired Ozona, Texas CORRECTIONS : In the May issue, a typo in the article by David T. Jones and Stephen T. Smith, “Preparing for Promotion Panel Season,” inaccurately rendered the amount of time panel members have, on average, to read each file as two min- utes. The correct figure is 20 minutes. In the April issue (Letters section), we inadvertently demoted Ben Read, iden- tifying him as the head of MED in the late 1970s. He was actually the under sec- retary for management (M) at the time. And in the March issue roundup of contributions by AFSA members serving in Iraq, we misinterpreted the acronym for the agency that sent John Malas to Iraq — DHS — stating that he was part of the Department of Homeland Security team when it was actually a Defense Humint Services team. We regret the errors. CLARIFICATION : A letter in the April issue commented on the assignments his- tory of the new Director General of the Foreign Service, W. Robert Pearson. As FSJ Editor Steven Alan Honley’s interview of the director general (February) noted, Director General Pearson served for three years as U.S. ambassador in Ankara, a differential post, before assuming his current duties. Web access to major advertisers. Go to www.afsa.org Click on Marketplace tab on the marquee Bukkehave www.bukkehave.com Charles Smith Corp. Living www.SmithLiving.com Clements International www.clements.com Diplomatic Auto. Sales www.diplosales.com Executive Club Suites www.execlubdc.com GLIFAA www.glifaa.org Harry Jannette International www.jannetteintl.com Hirshorn Company, The www.hirshorn.com Laughlin Management www.laughlincompanies.com Long & Foster www.simunek.com Marriott www.marriott.com Martens Cars www.martenscars.com Oakwood www.oakwood.com Prudential Carruthers/ JoAnn Piekney www.foreignservicehomes.com Prudential Carruthers www.prudentialcarruthers.com Remington www.remington-dc.com SDFCU www.sdfcu.org U.S. Gov’t Printing Office http://.bookstore.gpo.gov/ sb/sb-075.html WJD Management www.wjdpm.com For more information about advertisers in the Journal go to: www.afsa.org/marketplace MARKETPLACE