9/11 Worker Dies As Son Heads To Speech

(AP)  A former New York policeman died late Tuesday in a Manhattan hospital, just as his 21-year-old son prepared to appear at the State of the Union address to symbolize the desperate health problems of his father and other ailing Sept. 11 workers.

The former officer, Cesar Borja, 52, had been in intensive care, breathing through a tube, at Mount Sinai Medical Center, awaiting a lung transplant. Hospital spokeswoman Lauren Woods confirmed the death late Tuesday.

Borja's son, college student Cesar Borja Jr., was invited by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., to attend President Bush's speech as a reminder to the president of workers who were stricken with a host of illnesses after exposure to toxic World Trade Center debris.

The younger Borja learned of his father's death in a phone call while eating dinner around 6:30 p.m. but insisted on attending the president's 9 p.m. speech - in memory of his father.

The senator called Borja's death a "terrible tragedy."

The son, she said, "is a courageous and remarkable young man. His sense of duty to his father and to the mission that brought him to Washington is inspiring and heartbreaking."

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Read about Bonnie Giebfried, an ailing 9/11 EMT.
Read the story of NYPD Detective James Zadroga, the first confirmed casualty of ground zero exposure.

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The son's comments earlier in the day showed he was aware of just how critical his father's health situation had become — and why it was still important for him to speak out in Washington.

"It's a very emotional time, and it's very difficult," said the son. "My father is a symbol of those in need, in desperation."

The Hunter College student said he came to Washington to make the point that there are many more whose lives are threatened by their exposure at ground zero.

"9/11 is not over. It didn't end in 2001. It is still affecting my father and numerous other first responders," he said. "My father is an extreme example of what can happen and what may and will happen in the future."

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[epearson65]

feelfree1, Thanks so much for your opinion on healthcare costs, and I hope you'll consider the following:

Healthcare has been a volatile issue since before the war in Iraq, and even long before the present administration took office, so I fail to see how blaming President Bush applies here. Democrats and Republicans alike have failed to come up with solutions for decades because they can't come to a comprimise between ENTITLEMENT, CHOICE, and COST. AGREEMENT on how to implement a government sponsored initiative without SOCIALIZING healthcare seems to be the main roadblock to solving the healthcare issue....

[juliemd]

I am sick and tired of this administration and their complete lack of follow-up on domestic issues, whether it's the health of the brave first-responders in NYC or the state of the City of New Orleans after Katrina.

They are not doing the best they can, and I believe they really do not care about everyday men and women.

[sparknurlife]

Just signed up to CBS NEWS...read all the comments on this story, and I would have to agree with jimibear. Holli, this isn't a personal attack on you, but where in the world is your compassion for your fellow AMERICANS? What if this were your husband, father or brother? How would you feel then?

[feelfree1]

epearson65,

More people would be able to afford health care, if we hadn't just wasted 2 trillion dollars ($2,000,000,000,000) on a disgraceful and self-defeating illegal war of aggression, for nothing.

[epearson65]

CHOICES PART ONE:
I am not completely satisfied with how things are being handled in Iraq, and I know there are many people suffering as a result of Sep 11, but I feel that the people making decisions for our country (President Bush is not working alone in this endeavor) are doing the best they can under the circumstances just as a Democrat administration would. Unfortunately, we live in a country of ENTITLEMENTS where the masses want to be compensated for the imperfections in life. They want someone (anyone but them) to take the blame for their suffering, and to foot the bill. The fact is that many of the people without proper health coverage for illnesses resulting from Sep 11 would also not have had the proper health coverage if they had been diagnosed with terminal cancer that day, either. Workers compensation isn't a premium health care plan, it is a last resort. What happened to providing for ourselves, taking responsibility for our own actions and pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps when adversity hits? It is a struggle and people sometimes suffer, but that is what makes us (as a whole nation) stronger. There are people in America who CHOOSE to purchase brand new cars on credit instead of purchasing GOOD health care plans. There are people who CHOOSE to spend money partying and dont save for their childrens college.
CONTINUED IN POSTING BELOW.

[epearson65]

CHOICES PART TWO:
There are people who CHOOSE to spend money on cigarettes or drugs and dont save money in retirement accounts. They expect the government to COMPENSATE for this with medicare, college grants, and social security--programs that were never meant to be stand-alone solutions, only stop-gap measures. By the way, my family is lower middle income, we pay high taxes, we have inadequate health coverage through our employer, our oldest daughter attends college without financial aid and my spouse is a FEDERAL FIREFIGHTER and EMT who puts his butt on the line every day just like the workers of Sep 11 did. He is exposed to countless health risks such as aids, hepatitus C, chemicals, unsafe air, etc every day and HE UNDERSTANDS THE RISK. We don't do drugs or smoke, we don't party, and we don't buy new cars even though we have the disposable income to do so. We wait until we have saved money to make major purchases (instead of financing them), we save for our childrens education and we put aside money for emergencies. It is our sole responsibility to do so. We talk about this all the time, and it bothers us both to hear everyone blaming everyone else instead of just stepping up and doing their very best to get through a bad situation (even though it may take many years). He and I would like to think that Americans are just as proud and strong now as our forefathers were when they struggled and persevered for our freedoms sake so long ago.

[Jasonian18]

let me ask you where was the soul and compassion of the people who ran plains with Americans on them into the twin towers with Americans in them? huh why should we show any compassion in this time of war to the very same enemies who killed our people when Clinton had plenty of times to stop the 9/11 attacks. Let me ask you where were those terrorists compassions!

[h0lli]

Jimibear, you can be passionate about something (which by the way, I've agreed with your points so far) without being a complete ****** (which of course from your ealier comments about a-holes, you can take as a compliment if you like).

[coosagal-2009]

"Everybody has got a freaking sad story! GET OVER IT! It is all a part of life! A time to be born and a time to die! Every other story in the news is about a bunch of propaganda! These people are not heroes! They were and are paid to do a job regardless of the risk! Every freaking body and their grandmother have got a tragic story! From public figures to regular American%u2019s everyone has got a sad story to tell! Suck it up, my ancestors did! Everybody is always looking for someone to blame and someone to pay! Typical Americans! "

Can you wear a sign on your shirt, so if you are in a car accident, hit by a falling meteor or happen to be in the next terrorist attack, I can just walk over and say "everybody has a sad story." I might be mistaken, but I believe many of those heros were volunteers working hours trying to save one more person. What happened to your sense of decency and respect for human lives?

[jimibear]

Again, this time to you, Holli:

If people dying as a result of our neglect for those who did their duty, and, indeed, the state of our nation in general does not make you angry, you are lacking a vital spark of soul and compassion.

I see you don't bother to respond when someone posts "everyone's got a sad story, get over it" (as if you can "get over" a slow death due to respiratory collapse) or "why is it anyone else's responsibility to look after these people? They were just doing their jobs" when, in fact, "just doing their jobs" consisted of attempting to rescue victims of a horrendous attack and suffering horrible health consequences, leading to eventual death in some cases.

But when I am angered by such callous stupidity and say so, that's worthy of some silly, sarcastic response in your eyes.

What is wrong with you people? Where did you go so horribly astray that things like this don't even bother you any more? It is enough to make one despair of the heart and soul of people in this country.