A Valued Group
Ours is a white family that adopted transracially in 1984. In fact, there are many white families with adopted minority children in Harford county. We are personally acquainted with at least a dozen similar families.
Your Aug. 21 article, "The Wrong Idea for Black Kids?", outlining Sen. Howard Metzenbaum's bill prohibiting race in adoption, gave a distorted picture about the process of uniting adoptive parents with minority children. I find the whole article erroneous because of your use of the words "minority" and "race."
My concern is based on the fact that there are three races in the world and not just two as one would think based on this article. The Sun consistently fails to acknowledge that Asians represent a forgotten minority in our community. This minority suffers double racism because both blacks and whites discriminate against it.
It is time that the news media, schools, service agencies and public agencies take a positive step toward all races. You should be reminded that Asians represent half the world's population even if they are but a minority of minorities in Maryland.
They have contributed much to the world and are a valued group in our community.
K. Gary Ambridge
Bel Air
Escalator Help
I am writing to you regarding the Camden Yard escalator accident. I was the "unidentified sobbing woman" pictured in the paper June 19.
In all articles printed about the accident, nothing was mentioned of the exceptional assistance provided by police, emergency personnel, concessionaires and other people at the scene of the escalator accident.
There were nine members of my family at the game, and six of us were on the escalator when it collapsed.
Five children accompanied four adults, and those not on the escalator were witnesses to their siblings' and parents' medical needs being attended to by various personnel.
The police officers were extremely helpful, watching my son and nephew while my husband and his sister attended to family requiring assistance.
We were taken to two different hospitals, and the medical personnel, emergency medical technicians and police were again very helpful and supportive in communicating where members of our family were taken.
The escalator experience was one I hope never to encounter again, but the people who helped during this fiasco should be commended for their actions. They made a bad experience a bit better by their assistance.
Fern Aefsky
Wurtsboro, N.Y.
Iron Hazards
Colleen Pierre's Aug. 23 column focused on maintaining an adequate dietary supply of iron in children and adults. She did not mention the danger for some people of excessive dietary iron.
Hemochromatosis is the most common recessive inherited condition in the U.S., although many physicians are not familiar with it. In this condition, people absorb excessive amounts of iron from a regular diet and it gets deposited in their internal organs.
In Maryland, there are thought to be more than 20,000 affected persons, with a much larger number of gene carriers. Most affected persons do not develop any symptoms until well into adulthood.
Problems from excessive iron can include congestive heart failure, impotence, premature menopause, diabetes, bronze skin and arthritis.
If the correct diagnosis is made, patients can benefit from regular blood-drawing to lower their iron level. Once diagnosed, these people should avoid the high-iron foods and Vitamin C described in Ms. Pierre's column.
Chris Friedrich, M.D.
Baltimore
For Art's Sake
The Sun deserves to be congratulated for giving so much space to Alice Steinbach's Aug. 21 article, "The making of an art collection."
The article, describing the Vogels and their love of art, was tender, poignant and quite moving.
The Vogels are a counterpoint to the crass materialism resulting from our unbridled capitalistic system. They did not seek to profit from their astute art purchases; they were not looking for a write-off on their taxes; they did not buy for investment to become richer.
Nor are they self-serving, as many donors are.
Although they could have made a huge fortune by selling their art, they chose not to do so. They bought because they loved art and wanted to encourage unknown artists.
Even their choice of the National Art Gallery -- where there is no admission charge -- to receive their collection reveals an extraordinary concern and consideration for those who may not have the extra funds for a museum visit.
Theirs has been a simple charitable act with no strings attached, nor any manipulative gain involved. Their lifestyle is simple and they plan to keep it that way.
When asked about their art, their answers were without affectation or arrogance.
They bought what they liked and even now they plan to go on living the same way: simply and continuing to collect art.
Their modesty is as wonderful as their munificence.
A. Mednick
Baltimore
'Due Diligence' in Renting City Offices
Tim Mullaney's Aug. 21 Business section article about the "delayed Civil Service move," has substantial misstatement of facts.
If Mr. Mullaney had made any recent contact with me, the city's real estate officer, or with Shirley Williams, the acting comptroller, the following "hard facts" would have been offered with appropriate supporting documentation:
The first contact with Real Estate was made on April 4, when Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke personally called to request my attendance at a luncheon meeting between him and John Paterakis to discuss the use of the Munsey Building for Civil Service and other city agencies.
On April 28, a written space request was received from the Civil Service Commission. The comments attributed to the mayor that "the problem became a crisis because of delay and indecision in the office of the city comptroller" fails to account for the period from 1992, when a request was made by Circuit Court to relocate Civil Service, to April 1994. The apparent inaction would fall to the administration, not the department of real estate.
As to Judge Joseph H. H. Kaplan's comments regarding an offer to lease the building to the city for $3 per square foot, no such offer was ever made to Real Estate.
Quite to the contrary, the Munsey proposal would have obligated the city to either a $4 million base rent payment ($9.50 per square foot) over a 10-year period, with the landlord providing no capital improvements, or a $41 million lease obligation ($12.50 per square foot) over a 20-year period, which would include capital improvements to the building.
Relative to submissions received from the Equitable Building and Calvert Plaza, the 10-year Munsey proposal was the highest of the three and had no discernible advantages to the city. In addition, without the capital improvements being made, the building arguably lacks the appropriate level of life and safety and Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
The Munsey proposal included a vague statement that "the ownership would be willing to discuss with the city a variety of ownership opportunities."
During the last 90 days of negotiations, no offer at any value was made to sell the building to the city at the end of any specific lease period. In fact, the limited discussion addressing this issue indicated such a sale to be unlikely due to owner's estate planning considerations, as well as taxation issues.
In reference to the mayor's and city solicitor's statement that "no law requires the city to solicit proposals from a large number of landlords before signing a lease," their comment may be accurate from a legal standpoint but it fails to recognize the real purpose of such an exercise.
I assume that they are both aware of the relevance of doing the appropriate amount of "due diligence" in order to firmly establish the current market value for Class "B" office space. It's an entirely appropriate process if the objective is to get the city the best deal for its dollar.
Arthur E. Held
Baltimore
The writer is the city real estate officer.