Federal and local officials are growing increasingly concerned that nearly 60 percent of families who lost relatives in the September 2001 terror attacks have not filed claims with the victim compensation fund established by Congress.

The most recent statistics show that 3,016 people died in the attacks at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and aboard an airliner that crashed in Pennsylvania. But as of Friday, with the Dec. 22 deadline for applications less than four months away, only 1,240 death claims had been filed with the fund. And while no one knows exactly how many people were injured in the attacks, so far only 1,035 of them have sought compensation from the fund, which has no cap.

"I am concerned, and I think the administration is concerned," said Kenneth R. Feinberg, the federally appointed lawyer who oversees the fund and makes its final decisions. Mr. Feinberg has estimated that the fund, which has paid out $623.1 million, could distribute as much as $3 billion. There is a basic award for every death, which is increased to reflect a family's economic loss as a result of the victim's demise. Mr. Feinberg plans to meet Tuesday with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York City to discuss the mayor's unease about the pace of applications, and several members of Congress have asked Mr. Feinberg to visit their home states to help raise awareness about the Dec. 22 deadline, which is built into the fund statute and cannot be waived.

"The statute has a little more than three months to run," Mr. Feinberg said. "So where are the rest of the people?"

more…
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/31/nyregion/nyregionspecial3/31FUND.html?hp

when you collect the money, so many families aren't collecting and are pursuing suits instead.

-sandy

If that wasn't the case, they'd be keeing it a secret and let the fund expire without a peep in the media. The concerns are all about how much it's going to cost big business and the government. They don't give a poodle shit about the people who died or their relatives.


Fair & Balanced Buttons — The Cronus Connection

...if these cases are brought to trial? Who will be asked to testify? Will a judge allow Junior to take the oath and be questioned about what he knew about all of this before 9/11? Clinton was required to testify in a lawsuit as a sitting president. So the precedent has been set. Did Bush recieve any warnings of what might happen pre-911? Why did he keep reading a goat story to kids in Florida for a half an hour after he knew of the first plane hitting the building? There are plenty of questions I would like answered if my loved one had died that fateful day. And my first questions would come with cross examing Bush. That is what they are worried about here. Its not money these people are concerned with, or they would have already took the money and run like many already have. These people want answers.

Don

That's the first thing I thought of when I read the article this morning ... What will come out in the trials.

If they were really concerned about the families, why would they put a time limit on recieving compensation.

As a :kick: : I feel it is important to be accurate about these little details regarding *'s positioning on 9/11. Bush was listening to a child read a story about a goat in a classroom, minutes away from an international airport, and continued sitting there listening for some minutes (we do not know precisely how long) after he was told of the SECOND plane hit on the WTC. That is what is documented in the video produced by the Booker (sp?) Elementary School available on the web. At that point, everyone and their chimpanzee knew that "America was under attack" and commercial airliners were being used as weapons of war, yet Bushy Boy did nothing, neither was he whisked away to safety by the SS.

He knew, they all knew, he was in no danger.

The law is:

"Here, take some money (after we deduct for life insurance, social security death benefit, pension, etc etc) and just shut up and don't ask any questions".

Not working.

right to sue the hell out of the admin.

And that's a positive development! But look at the reactions of people like Feinberg. He cannot imagine, in this most perfect of capitalistic worlds, that a lot of people want to FIND OUT how their relatives died, who (if anyone) was negligent, so things could be fixed -- rather than take a bunch of cash and run. Imagine that!! Preferring the principle of the thing over the bribe offered!

This is hopeful. It also points out one of the RW's weaknesses -- it thinks that everything and everyone can be bought with enough cash. Unfortunately, this is usually true, but if we as a society can possibly get our shit together enough to once in a while refuse the bribes, society will be the better for it.

I wonder why that is?

:shrug:

BUSH KNEW















CHENEY DID IT

peace

The American airline industry is bracing itself for a barrage of lawsuits after revelations that almost 60% of the families who lost relatives in the September 11 terrorist attacks have yet to file claims with the victims' compensation fund.

With the December 22 deadline for applications fast approaching, only 1 240 death claims have been filed -- a far cry from the 3 016 people known to have died in the attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, and in the Pennsylvania crash.

"I am concerned, and I think the administration is concerned," Kenneth Feinberg, the federally appointed lawyer who oversees the fund, told the New York Times.

"The statute has a little more than three months to run. So where are the rest of the people?"

http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?ao=19863

Thanks for the link.

Don

...what the statute of limitations is on filing their suits.

And if they've lost their houses.

that's higher than I thought it would be .
Bless them ..

They know that the "9/11 Victims' Fund" is nothing more than hush money to shut them up so they won't find out the truth.

BTW, Lisa Beamer took the money like an idiot. She'd rather have the money and her husband's memory hijacked by the sweatshop conservatives (she being one of them) than find out the truth about her idol Bush.

"...the congressional airline bailout program, "nothing but a 9/11 'shut-up' fund"..."

"I think it's a shut-up fund," said Ms. Mariani, whose husband, Neil, was aboard United Airlines Flight 175, which was flown into the World Trade Center. "As far as I'm concerned, they want to get this over with and done and under the rug, but that is not justice." (June 2002)

The perfect sound-byte!!!

They need to turn this into a slogan, and get it out there in a big way. "Just Say No To The Shut Up Fund" would get more people asking more questions. Maybe they can roll it out a couple of weeks before the rePuke Convention in New York. Might just stuff the right's use of 9\11 for politcal gain.

:shrug:

no further comment.