Quake ‘Relief’ Has Worsened the Pain

* Once again, those of us who reside in the Valley, who play by the rules such as paying taxes, who are law-abiding and keep our property in reasonably good order, are going to get it in the shorts. Not only are we victims of the recent earthquake, we are also victims of the system.

Those of us who for these many years paid for homeowners insurance plus earthquake protection will at best receive a chain-link fence to replace our nice block walls, plus a few dollars to cover interior damage. We may end up with enough change to buy lunch at a fast food place. The deductible on these earthquake policies is between 10% and 15% of the insured value. So much for insurance.

The next problem is the Federal Emergency Management Agency. I, like many others, went to one of their disaster centers. After standing in line for four hours, I ended up with a stale doughnut and an appointment slip for a date in the middle of this month.

Frankly, they didn’t care whether I or any of the others had a place to stay, food or clothing. One of their people stated, if you are here to obtain vouchers for food or shelter, you’re in the wrong place. Four of their so-called coordinators gave out four different instructions. Even the FEMA person passing out the appointment slips acted like he had a chip on his shoulder.

And President Clinton during the so-called town meeting acted bored and almost went to sleep.

BOB GIEDEMAN

West Hills