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            <name>Title</name>
            <description>A name given to the resource</description>
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                <text>Department of Justice Emails</text>
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            <name>Description</name>
            <description>An account of the resource</description>
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                <text>The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families.  These e-mails have been organized here by date.</text>
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    <name>September 11 Email</name>
    <description/>
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        <name>September 11 Email: Body</name>
        <description>The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end.</description>
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            <text>
Saturday, March 16, 2002 2:28 PM
American Heroes

I sent the following to the President of the United States, and to your "benefits"(?) email address.  I forward it to the "comments" address here:

 ---------------------------------------------------------------

come in many forms.  You know this, President Bush.  That's only one of MANY reasons why we put our trust in you.  And thank you for your Gibraltarian leadership especially in these trying times.  We are praying for you, sir!

AG John Ashcroft, one of your "right hands", is, I'm sure, a valuable asset to you and us in the United States; I trust your judgement there.  I, as one American, have seen him in action in the wake of 911, and I applaud him and stand behind him.  We are praying for him, you and all of our great leaders!

But AG Ashcroft, like our President here at Texas A&amp;M, is also a fighter in fights that make being a human being truly tiring (life is too short for constant fighting like this!).  Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals, and Transgendereds are human just like any other human.  They are "strange" in their sexual orientation perhaps, but they are born every day, like me and my friend and wife,             , who are  nonmaternal, nonpaternal, and so "childfree".  There are ALL KINDS of humans - - Americans.  Each and EVERY ONE of them can be - - and are - - heroes.              who was eulogized by Senator McCain on September 22, 2001 was one.  He was also gay.

You understand my (our) concern (with do respect sir I must say it is ALL I CAN DO to remain composed in this email!) then when I (we) heard the following remarks by Kenneth Feinberg on "Meet the Press" yesterday (Mr. Feinberg's remarks really reminded me, in fact, of President Ray Bowen's similar remarks a year ago here at Texas A&amp;M University!):

"[Gays and lesbians are] left out of my program to the extent 
that their own state doesn't include them. I cannot get into 
a position in this program, which has a one-and-a-half or 
two-year life start second-guessing what the state of New 
York or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or the state of 
Virginia or New Jersey, how they treat same-sex partners, 
domestic live-ins, etc. I simply say this: What does your 
state law say about who is eligible? If your state law makes 
you eligible, I will honor state law. If it doesn't, I go 
with the state. Otherwise, Tim, I would find myself getting 
sued in every state by people claiming that I'm not following 
how the state distributes money. I can't get into that local 
battle. I've got to rely on state law."

President Bush, this is a copout statement on TV just as much as it is a copout on the campus of Texas A&amp;M University!  And it has as much dignity!  ALL of the American Heroes of 911 AND their families (of EVERY "shape and size") deserve the support of the American people, and the 911 fund!  Please, I beg you, help us stop this ridiculous fighting!  It is very tiring!  And don't worry about the lawsuits.  The greatest, most overshadowing, influential, ripe-with-meaning "law" in our country reads as follows: "We hold these truths to be self-evident . . .".  Well, you know the rest, sir.  I do too.

Thanks for your ear, Mr. President!

With all of my heart,

Individual Comment

P.S.  Your simpy GREAT mother and father are very dear to us on campus here!  We are blessed to have them!

 
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        <name>September 11 Email: Date</name>
        <description>The local time and date when the message was written.</description>
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            <text>2002-03-16</text>
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        <element elementId="50">
          <name>Title</name>
          <description>A name given to the resource</description>
          <elementTextContainer>
            <elementText elementTextId="409710">
              <text>dojR000975.xml</text>
            </elementText>
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    <elementSet elementSetId="4">
      <name>911DA Item</name>
      <description>Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item.</description>
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          <name>Status</name>
          <description>The process status of this item.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409711">
              <text>approved</text>
            </elementText>
          </elementTextContainer>
        </element>
        <element elementId="53">
          <name>Consent</name>
          <description>Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409712">
              <text>full</text>
            </elementText>
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        <element elementId="54">
          <name>Posting</name>
          <description>Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409713">
              <text>yes</text>
            </elementText>
          </elementTextContainer>
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        <element elementId="55">
          <name>Copyright</name>
          <description>Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409714">
              <text>yes</text>
            </elementText>
          </elementTextContainer>
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        <element elementId="56">
          <name>Source</name>
          <description>The source of this item.</description>
          <elementTextContainer>
            <elementText elementTextId="409715">
              <text>born-digital</text>
            </elementText>
          </elementTextContainer>
        </element>
        <element elementId="57">
          <name>Media Type</name>
          <description>The media type of this item.</description>
          <elementTextContainer>
            <elementText elementTextId="409716">
              <text>email</text>
            </elementText>
          </elementTextContainer>
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        <element elementId="59">
          <name>Created by Author</name>
          <description>Whether the author created this item.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409717">
              <text>yes</text>
            </elementText>
          </elementTextContainer>
        </element>
        <element elementId="60">
          <name>Described by Author</name>
          <description>Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409718">
              <text>no</text>
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        <element elementId="61">
          <name>Date Entered</name>
          <description>The date this item was entered into the archive.</description>
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            <elementText elementTextId="409719">
              <text>2002-03-16</text>
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