Daniel Cohen, whose daughter Theodora was one of 270 people murdered when Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, feels utterly betrayed by the Bush administration’s plan to normalize relations with the Gaddafi regime: Kadafi killed my child.

Has Libya helped the U.S. in its fight against terrorism? Yes, the Kadafi government has ratted out some of its former associates. But the Islamists have been trying to kill Kadafi for years. We are helping him get rid of his own enemies.

With oil at nearly $70 a barrel, Libya will be allowed to open a new embassy in Washington; it will soon be hosting lavish parties. Perhaps Kadafi’s daughters will be spied shopping on Fifth Avenue or on Rodeo Drive. Perhaps the leader himself will be invited to Washington.

What hurts me the most is that the Bush administration is letting Kadafi off the hook without making him take responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing. Yes, the Libyan government issued a well-lawyered, very limited statement of “civil responsibility” in order to avoid United Nations sanctions. But Kadafi himself has continued to insist that Libya had nothing to do with the bombing, and after all his voice is the only one that really counts in Libya. Throughout the Middle East and Africa, most people think Libya was framed — as do many in Europe and even Britain. The Libyans are making vigorous and persistent attempts to get the only person convicted for the atrocity out of a Scottish prison. A British novel and a Scottish play pinned the bombing on the United States or Israel. In September, an English National Opera presentation will portray Kadafi as a flawed but charismatic hero.

Nothing can bring back Theo and all the other slain innocents. Kadafi and his cronies who planned and carried out the bombing are now beyond reach. But at least we should leave a clear record of what happened — and who was responsible. By normalizing relations with Libya and exonerating Kadafi — and that is clearly what the Bush administration has done — we have even lost that chance. Is it any wonder that I feel betrayed, horrified, outraged, helpless and deeply depressed.