N001459
Tuesday, January 08, 2002 6:53 PM
Comment
I respectfully request and pray you read this entire message/comment and give
it some thought.
I am just as sorrowful and sympathetic as anyone for the victims of the 9-11
murders. I fail to see why the taxpayers owe the victims anything, however.
The US government doesn't compensate others in the same way. The government
didn't compensate the victims of the Murrah building bombing with any
special compensation AT ALL, (unless they had a federal pension, insurance or
similar policy in place) and they were in a Federal building! That being
said, I will accept the argument that the action was an attack against the
entire USA, government included, and therefore something could be done, if
for no other reason than to avoid even the appearance of our government not
caring about its people.
Why give such a windfall to them, however? No one on this planet has a
guarantee he or shee will be alive tomorrow, much less employed or making at
least as much as he or she makes today. Why is the government treating this
incident like that fact is not so? Things happen in life and the only things
that are guaranteed are death and taxes. That may sound cliche, but it is as
true as anything that can be said. To give the survivors upwards of a million
dollars and more, up front, is obscene. This essentially guarantees those
people who have any skill in managing money a lifetime guarantee of
prosperity. No one else gets that. This is not envy. This is a taxpayer
asking the government to, FOR ONCE, be responsible with my, and other
taxpayers', money. Don't take my word for it. Find out how many of the
general public think those survivors should get getting such a windfall. I'll
bet it is a minority.
MY SUGGESTION: Take the money that is going to be doled out to the victims
and put it in a money market account, or some kind of interest earning
financial vehicle. Use the interest earned to fund the following benefits to
the victims, and when all benefits have been accounted for, retrieve the
money and put it back where you got it. (1) Guarantee the victims that all
expenses they incurred, be they burial expenses, medical expenses, etc, will
be paid for by the government. (2) Guarantee the family members who lost
wage-earners the equivalent of the lost salaries, insurance coverage that was
covered by their employers, etc, payable monthly or annually, for three
years. (This of course would be subject to the same mitigation that is in
place now with any life insurance, etc, being considered.) That should give
the survivors a chance to get their lives back together and become
responsible for themselves. That is what this country is about. I don't see
how one can justify just making instant millionaires (from the taxpayers'
pockets) out of a bunch of ordinary working people just because they lost a
loved one, for whatever reason.
This largesse being proposed is being called "Compensation." That money
doesn't represent compensation for a loved one. Ask any of the survivors if
they'd take even $5 million versus getting their loved ones back. This is
being done to make the doers feel good about themselves and look good in the
public eye, pure and simple. Otherwise, why not do it a little more sensibly,
as I have suggested? It could be done so that it wouldn't cost the taxpayers
and it would still help the victims.
As for the victims crying about the proposal not being enough, can you spell
greed? This country is infamous for the degree with which slick talking
lawyers and gullible juries (remember the DuPont implant pseudo-science and
the New Mexico hot coffee award? What? Coffee is hot??) hold the country
hostage in the guise of reparagions/compensation. Everybody wants a chance to
catch that magic ship coming in and the victims all see this as theirs.
Again, they say it is not enough, but ask them what they would turn down if
they could get their loved ones back.
AS you can tell, I am a proponent of Tort reform. I am also a proponent of MY
government being fiscally responsible. I imagine I'll go to my grave
frustrated on both accounts, but I must try.
Individual Comment