W000773
Tuesday, November 06, 2001 11:20 AM
Sept. 11 Victims Compensation Fund
To: Attorney General John D. Ashcroft
Sir:
It has already been publicly stated by a respected volunteer charged with
distributing funds to a victim of the Pentagon incident that the victim said
upon receiving his check, "I don't deserve all of this money". The volunteer
came forward with this statement (sans the victim's name) because it troubled
him that he had assisted another human being in profiting from the loss of a
loved one. Clearly this caused emotional hardship to both parties. Give the
American public some credit for their integrity.
I live in Worcester, MA and was (and still am) a firsthand witness to the
outpouring of support for the 6 firefighters' families here. I can say with
certainty that those families profited from their loss. It is a shame that
the shock of that incident was built up to such an unrealistic degree. I
suppose I should say that my nature is that of a giver. I have given a great
deal of money and time to worthy causes in my day. So much so at times that
some recipients of my graciousness have mistakenly taken me for a wealthy man
not realizing the extent of my sacrifice. But I continue to give
nevertheless because it is in my heart to do so. I did not give to the
families of those firefighters because to put it all too simplistically;
enough is enough. People die every day. Firefighters die premature deaths
on a regular basis but their survivors' lives are not enriched by their death
and rightfully so. Why were these firefighters different? The magic (?) of
the media. I instead gave to an organization which supports the homeless
here. Their need was far greater.
The grief of the public in regard to Sept. 11 has already been exploited to
the umteenth degree due in large part to the fact that the Red Cross and
others have failed to inform the public as to the amount of money they would
need to compensate these families. There is no excuse for not coming up with
this target figure. It promoted a glut of giving to such an extent that it
is out of proportion with the event. A journalist recently brought up an
excellent point. Will the public be so generous next time? This so far is
an isolated, unique incident. What will be given for the next
catastrophe--say, a major earthquake for instance? It has already been
reported that other charities are suffering losses because of this
overcompensation. When will it stop?
This mess is no less than the emotional rape of the public during a time when
their collective hearts have been crushed by such an unprecedented
catastrophe. I have such a pain in my heart from seeing this type of
behavior on such a large scale twice in my lifetime.
It has been wisely said that if you leave a dollar on the kitchen table then
a child will be tempted to steal it. It is better not to leave it there in
the first place. Such is the fragility of human goodness. No matter what
the law states "explicitly" or what it doesn't state the Sept. 11 Victims
Compensation Fund is a charitable act and as such should be allocated only to
those who show a need. The very existence of this fund is questionable. (I
confess that I don't fully understand how the U.S. government is responsible
in any concrete way for the suffering of the survivors.)
The Red Cross was dead wrong in not participating in a coordination of
benefits with other charities and if possible it should be forced to do so.
And as far as the question of whether a payee should be registered and have
his/her disbursements tracked or not; I believe this to be an absolute
necessity given the unprecedented circumstances with which we're faced.
"Double dipping", whether intentional or not, cannot be tolerated and I
believe that all of the organizations involved with distributing funds have a
responsibility to prevent it no matter what.
And in case you're wondering; no, I did not send a contribution to the Sept.
11 survivors. It was painfully clear to me early on that most people had
already been duped into sending too much and I refused to be counted as one
of them. As previously mentioned, many other charities are feeling the pinch
as they are pushed into the shadow of Sept 11. My check, I'm sure, will come
in handy to one of them.
God bless you as you struggle with this issue. I pray that He will lead you
to the right path as He has me.
Kindest regards
Individual Comment
Worcester, MA