short shrift
I believe that for every action there is an equal and opposite government program. I learned, a short time ago, that there are enormous differences in reimbursement between those martyrs’ families of September 11 and the families of those who die serving our country in uniform. Like the rest of the nation, Malibuites are not really talking about it, because you just don’t criticize anything having to do with September 11 like people seem to do regarding our overseas troops. I can’t let the numbers pass by without scribbling to The Malibu Times because there is something disquieting about the state of mind of this country.
If you lost a family member in the September 11 attack, I read, you’re going to get an average of $1,185,000. The so-called “stretch” is a minimum guarantee of $250,000, all the way up to $4,700,000. If you are a surviving family member of an American soldier killed in action, the first check you get is a $6,000 direct death benefit, half of which our government taxes. Next, you get $1,750 for burial costs. If you are the surviving spouse, you get $833 a month unless you remarry. Then there’s a payment of $211 per month for each child under 18. When the child hits 18, those payments come to an end. This is less money than most California welfare mothers collect.
Keep in mind that some of the 911 heirs who are getting an average of $1,185,000 and up are complaining that it’s not enough to keep them going. The 911 fatalities were catastrophic, but for most of them, they were simply in the wrong place. Soldiers put themselves in harm’s way foe all of us each day, and they and their families know and respect the dangers.
In war, there are no unwounded soldiers or military families and they need our support. May God bless them.
And that is all I have to say.
Tom Fakehany