N001841
Tuesday, January 15, 2002 11:48 PM
Victims Compensation Fund
Master Feinberg:
On September 11, 2001, my son , a firefighter with on Staten Island, responded to a terrorist attack on the World Trade
Center. He was murdered that day, along with many other rescue workers.
Besides the rescue workers, thousands of people who were in the building to do
a days work, were murdered also. The phenomenal rescue effort in which 25,
000 people were saved will go down in history. Public sympathy has been
incredible.
Almost immediately following this great tragedy the Federal Government set up
a fund from which victim's family could recoup monies, in lieu of suing the
Airlines. This has turned into a major travesty. To penalize person, mainly
the firefighter, policemen, EMT worker, and Port Authority Personnel families
by reducing their awards by the amounts of insurance and pension they have
received is simply absurd.
In my opinion, the Federal Government has let the American People down.
Because of pure lack of vigilance and the softening of Immigration Laws and
Airline Security this was allowed to happen. There have been many articles
of late that give good evidence that plots and plans were uncovered. Plans
in which airplanes would be used as bombs were discovered in the Phillipines
as far back as 1994/95. The CIA & FBI were notified and nothing was done.
Get Smart America!
We have all be discouraged from suing the airlines because it has been said
that their liability insurance is not great enough to cover the amount of
claims that would be made in court against them. Pennies on the dollar would
be recouped we've been told. Not even worth going that route has been said.
However, if this wasn't the case and we could sue the Airlines and We Would
Win, the awards granted WOULD NOT be reduced as you plan to reduce the awards
from the Victim's Compensation Fund. THEREFORE, FOR THIS REASON, I AM AGAINST
DEDUCTION OF INSURANCE PROCEEDS AND PENSIONS FROM ANY AWARDS THE VICTIM'S
COMPENSATION FUND DISTRIBUTES.
I find it very disheartening that we the families have had to come out first
to protest for the dignified recovery of our loved ones and now this.
Dealing with the grief from the loss of our loved ones is enough. OSAMA BIN
LADEN MUST BE GLOATING AT THE WAY YOU ARE TREATING ALL OF US, THE VICTIM'S
FAMILIES.
Individual Comment
Staten Island, NY