Despite all that, an email backup strategy is all too often ignored by many companies. Email has a remarkably low profile on the radar of many businesses despite its importance in the running of it. It’s often viewed as a tool that’s “just there,” and used accordingly.

Roughly two-thirds of American workers use email as part of their job function. They average between 60 and 200 work related emails each day. Add non-work related ones to the mix and you have a lot of traffic.

Despite the importance of the part played by email, the messaging systems alone do very little to help business manage data. The latest email systems have archives, and the ability to interact with archive servers, but still offer little in the way of comprehensive email backup.

For that we need a complete email backup strategy. One that incorporates external storage, effective archiving, indexing, security, compliance and resilience. Most of us are aware of the importance of resilience and server backups, but what about security?

Ask any corporate lawyer what their top business fears are, and they will inevitably mention email. It’s a terrific medium for communication, but can easily be used for other purposes. Any email backups need to be stored securely, and free from tampering. With the amount of proprietary knowledge contained in email, it’s a valuable commodity that would soon find a paying audience if it escaped into the wild.

Not only does business have to abide by statutory retention regulations, they have to be able to retain all that information for their own use. With the amount of business conducted via email, contracts passed and agreed, deals done and prices set, there needs to be a secure but accessible record of every single one.

So the imperative is to have a logical, organized and secure email backup system to preserve the functioning of the business. With email serving as the corporate memory and knowledge, it’s too important a resource to be casual about. When email works, its invaluable, when it doesn’t, it can be disastrous.

Not only can business grind to a halt, but important knowledge, contractual information and proprietary data can be lost. For those in regulated industries, it can also mean sanctions from the authorities if email isn’t available for inspection.

Imagine losing your own memory and how it would affect your daily life. Not knowing how to do aspects of your job, or what appointments you have for the next week. Now multiply that by however many employees your company has. How do you think that would affect how you do business?

Read the first letter

But after I posted letters on the “AC360″ blog for 10 days, a lot of readers liked them, so I extended the string to the first month. Then the first 100 days. Then 200. And now, I have written enough to fill two books. And yes, I am aware that this can look like either dedication or mental illness, depending on your point of view.

Most of the letters are funny, or at least they make me laugh. Like the one I wrote about his fancy new presidential limo.

Mr. President, How’s the 6,000-pound beast?

But plenty are serious, too. I’ve written about swine flu, Haiti, the Middle East, the wars and of course the economy. I’ve taken the president to task now and then; for example, when he wrote to the big guy in North Korea instead of me, his dedicated pen pal.

Wait a minute, Mr. Postman

I’ve written about my own personal struggles and triumphs, such as being trapped in Indianapolis, Indiana, by a blizzard while my beloved Saints played the Colts in the Super Bowl.

Trapped in Indiana

Sometimes I depart from my regular fare to share events in my life that have shaped my views, like a long story about when I first encountered racism as a child.

When I discovered racism

Grinding out so many full-length letters has not always been easy, especially in our increasingly shorthand, e-mailing, texting world; OMG LOL. After all, I do have a day job. Many nights, long after the Washington newsmakers are asleep and my family is, too, I sit in the darkness of our living room typing away while the dog snoozes at my feet. Happens on the road in hotels, too. I mean, without the dog, of course.

I considered actually mailing the letters at the start, but decided that if I had to keep up with stamps, envelopes and figuring out how to print on the road I’d give up. Plus, he’s a very hi-tech president, so online posting seems adequate. Although who knows? Despite regular invitations for him to call, write back or come by to play air hockey, he’s never responded.

But plenty of readers have. Some have been complimentary, like C.A. Mortenson. “You know every time I get my mind set on something you guys come along and make me re-think things. Thanks.” Or Mary MacElveen “Your letter is by far one of THE most thought-provoking and powerful letters I have read in a long time.” Or Moneca, “Amen, Mr. Foreman. Amen.” It always makes me vaguely uncomfortable when someone calls me Mr. Foreman, btw. I prefer just Tom.

At least, I prefer Tom to what some obviously want to call me. Like Mariah from Texas. “Are you crazy?” Or Helen when she finally found something she agreed with, presumably after a lot of reading. “CNN should find a better job for you. That is the first letter you wrote that makes sense.” That made me laugh, because I’ve felt that way about other writers sometimes.

Many readers have urged me to keep on, and others have begged me to stop. I appreciate them all. I have probably been most touched by people who simply express a heartfelt connection over the miles, like when I wrote about Michael Jackson’s death and Windy responded, “Thank you for such a nice letter, I feel the same way.” And I’m flattered when someone reposts a favorite, such as the letter I wrote about rebuilding New Orleans.

Where is the safe house?

I made a few simple rules for myself. First, I don’t pick sides. I can offer analysis, ideas and general observations, but not conclusions beyond the common sense kind. Second, I try to be encouraging. Third, I respect the presidency. Although I write in a familiar tone, I never refer to President Obama (nor would I refer to any president) as “my friend,” or “pal.”

“How long are you going to do this?”

That’s the question so many people ask, and the honest answer is, “I don’t know.” Every time I reach a milestone like this one, I think I should call it quits. But I enjoy the process, heaven knows I need the practice writing and I don’t want to disappoint the people who now count on these letters every day, including my mother. So on it goes. I have considered doing it for the rest of my life. I know it’s not exactly the Lewis and Clark journals, but such letters, written concurrently with the events of our world, are an unusual historic record if nothing else.

I will almost certainly continue through the next presidential election in 2012. And I’d hate to abandon the current president during the critical changeover from first term to second should he win, and if the White House passes into other hands … well, why should the next president get a break?

600: Perils of a presidential pen pal

Asked on CNN’s “State of the Union” to give BP a grade from “A” to “F,” retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen assessed different aspects of the company’s response to the blown out well.

“At the well head, I’m not sure there’s any oil company that could have done anything more than they did,” Allen told CNN Chief Political Correspondent Candy Crowley. “The technology that was needed to be brought in for other parts of the world, was [brought in]. It took a long time to engineer it. It took a long time to install it. But, ultimately, it helped us put the cap on and control the well. So I give them fairly good marks there.”

But Allen added that where the energy giant’s performance has been lacking is in having a human touch.

“What BP is not good at: they’re a large global oil production company. They don’t do retail sales or deal with individuals on a transactional basis. Anything that’s involved, that has been a real struggle for them,” Allen said.

He added, “It’s something they don’t naturally have a capacity or a competency in their company and it’s been very, very hard for them to understand. And that’s the lens by which the American people view them and that’s the area where they need to improve the most.”

Video: BP oil clean up ‘still substantial’

Video: Oil still threatens Gulf waters

Video: Oil’s big vanishing act continues

Allen also reflected on what the oil industry has learned in terms of production technology in the course of trying to bring the rogue well under control.

The former Coast Guard official said technology of the sort used to cap the well must be made a part of deepwater drilling going forward.

“Oil production in the Gulf of Mexico was done by wells that were on the bottom of the ocean with all the technology on the bottom of the ocean where there was no human access and all the oil was moved by pipes,” he said. “We’ve had to bring in technology from the North Sea and off the coast of Africa to build these floating risers to create a production system that’s able to deal with this spill.

“I think what everybody’s learned moving through this is that there’s going to have to be a different type of production method out there that includes the type of technology that they’ve used to cap this well and capture the oil and that needs to be a permanent part moving forward.”

Asked whether the new technology could be integrated by November when the Obama administration’s moratorium on deepwater drilling is set to be lifted, Allen pointed out that the necessary technology “has already been built around this well.”

He added that the oil and gas industry is already starting to consider forming a consortium “to keep this type of equipment and take a look at it. And that’s going to have to be a fundamental part of this.”

Allen gives BP a mixed grade

The House ethics committee on Thursday will make public a report of Rangel’s alleged violations. After a nearly two-year investigation of Rangel, the committee’s report could bring a trial by a panel subcommittee in September.

A formal hearing would be a trial-like session involving formal charges with lawyers for the House acting as prosecutors and Rangel’s attorneys defending him, but some experts don’t foresee Rangel making it to the trial stage.

“I think all sides are going to be motivated to reach some kind of resolution short of the public hearings,” said Robert Walker, former chief counsel and staff director of both the Senate and House ethics committees.

Rangel said he welcomes the trial. He has said that “sunshine will pierce the cloud of serious allegations.”

The outcome of the hearing could range from dropping all charges to reprimand to expulsion from the House of Representatives.

Video: Rep. Rangel addresses ethics charges

Video: Rangel: ‘I look forward to responding’

As a result of his 2002 corruption trial, former Rep. James Traficant, an Ohio Democrat, became the second member of Congress to be kicked out since the Civil War.

Charles Tiefer, a professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law, said Traficant’s case “hardly even counts as a serious precedent.”

At the time of his ethics hearing, Traficant already had been convicted of taking bribes and other charges in a court of law. He spent seven years in prison and was released last year.

“A trial, particularly of a senior congressman, on charges that have been headline news, would be one of the most striking committee proceedings the House can have,” said Tiefer, who was solicitor and deputy general counsel of the House for 11 years.

Rangel temporarily stepped down as Ways and Means Committee chairman following the announcement of an ethics investigation of several allegations, including failure to pay taxes on a home in the Dominican Republic.

The congressman has also admitted a failure to report several hundred thousand dollars in assets on federal disclosure forms. In addition, he is under scrutiny for the purported misuse of a rent-controlled apartment for political purposes, as well as for allegedly preserving tax benefits for an oil-drilling company in exchange for donations to a project he supported at the City College of New York.

The House ethics committee previously admonished Rangel for violating rules on receiving gifts. Specifically, the committee found that Rangel violated House gift rules by accepting reimbursement payments for travel to conferences in the Caribbean in 2007 and 2008.

Should Rangel face a trial, it would play out in what Walker described as a cross between a courtroom trial and a congressional hearing.

Both sides would deliver opening statements and present their cases. They could also call witnesses, who could be cross-examined by the other side.

In a public hearing, there is more leeway given to the committee in terms of admissibility of evidence, Walker said.

Following the evidentiary part of the process, there would be closing arguments, and the case would go back to the jury.

In a House ethics trial, the “jury” is made up of an eight-member adjudicatory subcommittee whose members are allowed to question witnesses.

The subcommittee that would consider Rangel’s case comprises four Democrats and four Republicans, according to the ethics committee document.

It said Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-California, is the panel’s chair. Other Democratic members are Reps. G.K. Butterfield of North Carolina, Kathy Castor of Florida and Peter Welch of Vermont. The four Republicans are Reps. Michael McCaul of Texas, Mike Conaway of Texas, Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania and Gregg Harper of Mississippi.

The jury then would have to determine whether each charge was proven by the standard of “clear and convincing evidence.”

“That is less than ‘proof beyond a reasonable a doubt,’ which would be the standard at a criminal trial, but it’s more than the standard of just ‘preponderance of the evidence, which would be the standard at a civil trial,” Walker said.

Despite the outcome, the trial phase could be detrimental to Rangel, Tiefer said.

“It hurts his public image to parade a sequence of witnesses who testify that he is guilty of receiving favors and so forth, and it also arguably hurts the image of those connected with him in his party delegation,” he said.

If he adequately disputes the facts, he could persuade the committee to moderate or even drop all of the charges, Tiefer added.

The whole matter could be dismissed with no further action if the subcommittee decides that no wrongdoing was proven, but if members decide punishment is warranted, they would then have to decide whether to sanction Rangel.

“If they determine that it was a technical violation, the committee could then issue what’s called a letter of reproval, which is not an actual sanction,” Walker said.

If the committee decides more serious punishment is in order, such as reprimand, censure or expulsion, the full House must vote on the issue.

A simple majority vote is required to reprimand or censure a member of Congress, while a two-thirds majority is required for an expulsion.

The House has expelled only five members of Congress. A number of members, however, have resigned before the House took formal action, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Rangel has served 20 consecutive terms in the House. He’s facing a September 14 Democratic contest with Adam Clayton Powell IV, the son of the late scandal-plagued congressman Adam Clayton Powell Jr., who was ousted by Rangel 40 years ago.

Rangel’s other primary challengers include banker Vince Morgan, liberal activist Jonathan Tasini and Joyce Johnson, a field director for President Obama’s 2008 campaign.

Rangel said last week that he hoped the matter could be concluded in time for the September contest.

CNN’s Deirdre Walsh contributed to this report.

How Rangel’s ethics hearing could play out

During the operation last week at the Inova Fairfax Heart and Vascular Institute, doctors implanted a small pump that “improves heart function and will enable me to resume an active life,” Cheney’s statement said.

“The operation went very well and I am now recuperating,” the statement said.

Dr. Tim Gardner, former president of the American Heart Association, told CNN that such implants indicate severe heart failure.

“These devices are put in patients whose heart failure is so bad that they need a mechanical pump to keep their circulation going,” said Gardner, who is the medical director of the Center for Heart and Vascular Health at Christiana Care in Wilmington, Delaware.

Gardner was not involved in Cheney’s treatment.

Cheney has a history of heart problems, including five heart attacks dating back to the first one he suffered in 1978 at age 37.

“A few weeks ago, it became clear that I was entering a new phase of the disease when I began to experience increasing congestive heart failure,” Cheney’s statement said. “After a series of recent tests and discussions with my doctors, I decided to take advantage of one of the new technologies available and have a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) implanted.”

Cheney also suffered heart attacks in 1984 and 1988, and underwent a quadruple bypass surgery to unblock his arteries. Shortly after Cheney was elected vice president in November 2000, he had a fourth heart attack and received a stent to open an artery.

In February, Cheney suffered his fifth heart attack.

He was released from a Washington, D.C., hospital on June 28 after suffering from “progressive retention of fluid related to his coronary artery disease,” his office said at the time.

CNN’s Miriam Falco contributed to this report.

Cheney recovering from heart surgery

Former Sen. Bob Dole was so badly wounded 65 years ago that he almost didn’t make it off the battlefield. Now, he is recovering from surgery alongside troops injured in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“I’m just sort of one of the group. We show up at 10 o’clock and do our stuff,” Dole said as he pedaled a stationary bike during a morning physical therapy session.

Dole, who turns 87 this month, is at Walter Reed for rehabilitation connected to knee replacement surgery. A bout with pneumonia lengthened his post-op recuperation, so he’s been with the young troops since they arrived from the battlefield.

“I’ve been here long enough to watch when they first came in, and then to see them today. Whether it’s Lee or Chris or Levi, it’s amazing,” Dole said, as he watches Army Spc. Levi Crawford do a step exercise. “He couldn’t stand up on that step yesterday.”

As a veteran-turned-lawmaker, Dole has advocated for the nation’s veterans throughout his career, including serving as co-chair of a 2007 presidential commission that investigated shoddy conditions at Walter Reed, but he has nothing but praise for the medical care he has seen.

He marvels at the stark contrast between treatment today and his own experience in 1945, which left his right arm paralyzed.

“These modern medical miracles, you see them every day here,” he said. “If they’re wounded on one day, they can be in Walter Reed the third day. It took me nine hours to get off a battlefield. It took me weeks to get home.”

Dole sympathizes with Air Force Sgt. Christopher Curtis, 32, who was in dire shape after his CV-22 Osprey crashed in Afghanistan back in April.

“I couldn’t move. I was in a body cast,” Dole said. “That’s all behind me, but it does give you pause. I think about, ‘Jiminy – was I ever in as bad as shape as Chris?’”

Curtis said recovering alongside Dole has inspired him.

“Knowing that I’m going through what (Dole) went through…I’m not in a full body cast or anything like that,” he said. “They’ve basically eliminated that factor and here I am already in rehab (thanks to) surgeries and advanced technologies.”

The servicemembers said that when Dole comes to physical therapy, he always talks to everyone in the room, including family members who are always by their side — just like his mother was there for him 65 years ago.

While opinions about wars may change, Dole said, a family’s support is “one of those values that never changes.”

Everyone welcomes the former senator’s wise-cracking sense of humor.

“He’s a very funny guy, so he keeps everybody around him laughing and in good spirits,” Curtis said.

Dole is even willing to take a few jabs at himself and his failed run for president in 1996.

After Curtis told him he voted for him for president, Dole called him “a smart fella,” then deadpanned, “I finally found somebody that voted for me.”

Dole said he doesn’t dwell on how close he came to becoming president.

“You’ve got to move on, you know. Life’s short you got to keep pushing and realize we live in a great country,” he said. “One chapter ends and another chapter starts. You keep going.”

Army Sgt. Lee Langley, 26, said knowing how much Dole has accomplished after being seriously wounded on the battlefield gives him, and troops with more severe injuries than his, hope.

“It just means that I have all the opportunities in the world,” Langley said. “A lot of people are paralyzed, a lot of people don’t have legs or arms, but they can still have a good life afterwards.”

Surrounded by his young friends at the end of physical therapy, Dole makes a few wisecracks about age with Crawford, Curtis, and Langley like he’s one of the group.

“This is what America is all about, right here,” Dole said, pointing to the young troops.

Dole’s rehab inspires troops

Warren Richey,

Mark Clayton,

Linda Feldmann,

Lolita C. Baldor

October 05, 2009

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration has given a green light to the Homeland Security Department to be more competitive and choosey as it hires up to 1,000 new cyber experts over the next three years, the first major personnel move to fulfill its vow to bolster security of the nation’s computer networks.

The announcement follows a wave of cyber attacks on federal agencies, including a July assault that knocked government Web sites off the Internet and earlier intrusions into the country’s electrical grid.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who made the announcement on Thursday, said the hiring plan reflects the Obama administration’s commitment to improving cyber security. The move gives DHS officials far greater flexibility to hire whom they want, outside of more stringent federal guidelines. And it will also allow more latitude in pay.

As a result, Napolitano told an audience of cyber industry professionals, the new rules “will allow us to be competitive with you all” in luring quality applicants.

Much of the funding already has been budgeted, but DHS also is working with Congress for more money. Officials refused to say how much money the program would represent.

The hiring push also underscores the administration’s ongoing struggle to better organize and manage the country’s vulnerable digital defense. President Barack Obama vowed in February to tackle cyber issues, but still has not named a cyber coordinator, a job that experts say will be difficult to fill.

Napolitano said her department does not anticipate filling all 1,000 positions, which will include cyber analysts, developers and engineers who can detect, investigate and deter cyber attacks.

The secretary’s announcement marked the start of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, which reflects the White House goal to draw more public attention to the need for everyday computer users to exercise more diligence in protecting their online security.

In other comments, Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn said the Pentagon expects to make decisions in the coming weeks on whether to relax restrictions on the use of external computer flash drives and social media Web sites by members of the military and department employees.

The Pentagon banned the use of flash drives last November because of a virus threat officials detected on Defense Department networks.

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On the Net:

National Cybersecurity Awareness Month: http://www.dhs.gov/files/programs/gc(underscore)1158611596104.shtm