There can be no debate about the horror of the World Trade Center attack. No conceivable rational excuse for the criminal destruction of spectacular buildings and thousands of innocent lives can be advanced. It was monstrous; it was deadly; it was immoral.
Four years later, the survivors still mourn their loved ones and the world looks to ground zero as the crucial moment when American innocence died. Somehow, the families of those who perished moved on. Several thousand Federal dollars in compensation did not take away the pain but did enable dreams of a life still worth living.
Only after the settlements were made were the cries of the families in Oklahoma heard. Those families, too, suffered a terrible loss but received only speeches and sympathy.
And now there are the victims of Katrina. Not only were hundreds of family members lost but, in addition, entire businesses, lifestyles, community bonds, and the independence conferred by gainful employment were entirely obliterated. We must ask ourselves: do we deal with victims in an evenhanded manner?
The financial safety nets of insurance, high pre-trauma earnings, and safety member retirement...