I HAVE recently received the letter below from a penpal in the USA and thought that your readers might find it interesting.

It shows how much positive thinking there is in the USA, even after such atrocities have been carried out on them.

"By now everyone has been hearing the death toll rise and reports of the destruction from the terrorist attacks on the US. These were deplorable acts that we will never forget. But now is a time to look at the other side of the numbers coming out of New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. The sad but somewhat uplifting side that the mainstream media has not reported yet -- the SURVIVAL rates and some positive news about the attacks.

The Buildings: The twin towers of the World Trade Center were places of employment for some 50,000 people. With the missing list of just over 6,000 people, that means 90 per cent of the people targeted survived the attack.

The Pentagon: Some 23,000 people were the target of a third plane aimed at the Pentagon. The latest count shows that only 123 lost their lives. That is an amazing 99.5 per cent survival rate. In addition, the plane seems to have come in too low, too early to affect a large portion of the building. On top of that, the section that was hit was the first of five sections to undergo renovations that would help protect the Pentagon from terrorist attacks. It had recently completed straightening and blast proofing, saving untold lives. This attack was sad, but a statistical failure.

The Planes: American Airlines Flight 77. This Boeing 757 that was flown into the outside of the Pentagon could have carried up to 289 people, yet only 64 were aboard. Luckily 78 per cent of the seats were empty.

American Airlines Flight 11: This Boeing 767 could have had up to 351 people aboard, but only carried 92. Thankfully 74 per cent of the seats were unfilled.

United Airlines Flight 175: Another Boeing 767 that could have sat 351 people only had 65 people on board. Fortunately it was 81 per cent empty.

United Airlines Flight 93: This Boeing 757 was one of the most uplifting stories yet. The smallest flight to be hijacked with only 45 people aboard out of a possible 289 had 84 per cent of its capacity unused. Yet these people stood up to the attackers and thwarted a fourth attempted destruction of a national landmark, saving untold numbers of lives in the process.

In Summary: Out of potentially 74,280 Americans directly targeted by these inept cowards, 93per cent survived or avoided the attacks. That's a higher survival rate than heart attacks, breast cancer, kidney transplants and liver transplants -- all common, survivable illnesses.

The hijacked planes were mostly empty, the Pentagon was hit at it's strongest point, the overwhelming majority of people in the World Trade Center buildings escaped, and a handful of passengers gave the ultimate sacrifice to save even more lives. Don't fear these terrorists. The odds are against them."

Sheila Massey

Greenheys

Harwood

Bolton