echoes how many of us feel...<br /><br />"I think the vast differences in compensation between the victims of the<br />September 11th casualty, and those who die serving the country in<br />uniform, are profound. No one is really talking about it either because<br />you just do not criticize anything having to do with September 11th.<br /><br />Well, I just cannot let the numbers pass by because it says something<br />disturbing about the entitlement mentality of this country. If you lost<br />a family member in the September 11th attack, you're going to get an<br />average of $1,185,000. The range is a minimum guarantee of $250,000, all<br />the way up to $4.7 million. If you are a surviving family member of an<br />American soldier killed in action, the first check you get is a<br />$6,000direct death benefit, half of which is taxable. Next, you get<br />$1,750 for burial costs. If you are the surviving spouse, you get $833 a<br />month until you remarry. In addition, there is a payment of $211 per<br />month for each child under 18. When the child hits 18, those payments<br />come to a screeching halt. Keep in mind that some of the people that are<br />getting an average of $1.185 million up to $4.7 million are complaining<br />that it is not enough. <br /><br />We also learned over the weekend that some of the victims from <br /><br />the Oklahoma City bombing have started an organization asking for the<br />same deal that the September 11th families are getting. In addition to<br />that, some of the families of those bombed in the embassies are now<br />asking for compensation as well.<br /><br />You see where this is going, don't you?<br /><br />Folks, this is part and parcel of over fifty years of entitlement<br />politics in this country. It is really sad. Every time when a pay raise<br />comes up for the military, they usually receive next to nothing of a<br />raise. Now the green machine is in combat in the Middle East while their<br />families have to survive on food stamps and live in low rent housing. <br />However our own U.S. Congress just voted themselves a raise, and many of<br />you don't know that they only have to be in Congress one-time to receive<br />a pension that is more than $15,000 per month and most are now equal to<br />be millionaires plus. They also do not receive Social Security on<br />retirement because they did not have to pay into the system. If some of<br />the military people stay in for 20 years and get out as an E-7 you may<br />receive a pension of $1,000 per month, and the very people who placed<br />you in harms way receive a pension of $15,000 per month.<br /><br />I would like to see our elected officials pick up a weapon and join ranks<br />before they start cutting out benefits and lowering pay for our sons and<br />daughters who are now fighting. "When do we finally do something about<br />this??"
