Is 9/11 still killing the rescue workers and survivors?

When Arab Islamist terrorists hijacked airplanes and crashed them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City causing the buildings to collapse almost 3,000 people died.

Since 11 September 2001 a large number of rescue and recovery workers and local residents are suffering sickness and in some cases death caused due to what many believe was a result of all the toxic substances released into the environment.

Many of those people, who at the time were described as heroes by President Bush and the then Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, are now being left to suffer aliments that include cancer, pulmonary fibrosis and respiratory disease.

Some critics have suggested that it was for economics and the desire to reopen Wall Street that may have resulted in Christie Todd Whitman, the former administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, lying to the emergency services personnel and recovery workers when she told them that the air was safe to go back to work.

Since 9/11 many, once fit firemen, paramedics and detectives have had to retire from their jobs due to ill health and have not received any help, compensation or acknowledgment for their apparent sacrifice.

Do you believe that the number people who died on 9/11 will be far eclipsed by the number of people who will die directly because of their exposure at Ground Zero?

Should the government have done more to anticipate the consequences of working at Ground Zero and provided medical support and compensation to all those who helped in the immediate recovery and rescue operation?

Participate in this weeks open survey Is 9/11 still killing the rescue workers and survivors?

Was Bush right to prevent Lewis Libby from going to jail?

US President Bush created a political storm by intervening to stop the disgraced White House aide, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, from going to jail.

In March 2004 Libby testified to a grand jury and denied deliberately leaking that Valerie Plame's worked for the CIA.

In October 2005 Libby was indicted by the FBI on five counts: obstruction of justice and two counts each of false statement and two counts of perjury.

In September 2006 the former US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage confesses to leaking Plame's name and in March 2007 Libby was found guilty on four out of five charges and given a 30-month prison sentence.

Bush said "I respect the jury's verdict. But I have concluded that the prison sentence is excessive.".

President Bush did not grant Mr Libby a pardon and Libby will still face a $250,00 fine and remain on probation, Bush did however commute Libby's jail sentence.

The announcement from President Bush was prompted by a federal court decision earlier yesterday not to allow Mr Libby to remain at home pending the outcome of an appeal that would have meant that he would have been heading to jail within the next few weeks where he was expected to have served out his time in a minimum security jail.

Critics had suggested that Libby's strategy had until then appeared to be to string out the appeal until January 2009 in expectation of a pardon when Mr Bush left office.

The Democratic leader in the Senate, Harry Reid described Mr Bush's action as "disgraceful" and Charles Schumer, a Democratic senator was to reported to have said "As independence day nears, we're reminded that one of the principles our forefathers fought for was equal justice under the law. This commutation completely tramples on that principle.".

Fred Thompson, a Republican welcomed the decision from Bush, noting Mr Libby's long service to the US.

Has President Bush acted as a democratic leader or a dictator in this matter? Should those that hold positions of high office be held more, and not less accountable, than those that they represent?

Participate in this weeks open survey Was Bush right to prevent Lewis Libby from going to jail?