Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Americans In Lebanon Being Billed By Military For Evacuation
Americans trapped in Lebanon were already frustrated by the slow pace the U.S. government was taking in helping to evacuate them. CNN is now reporting that the U.S. military is billing those Americans it evacuates for the cost of transporting them by ship and helicopter out of the country. There were an estimated 25,000 Americans in Lebanon when the fighting between Israeli troops and Hezbollah guerillas in Southern Lebanon broke out last week.
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5 comments:
The State Dept. warned in writing against travel to this region twice this year, the latest on or about May 1. Why then, shouldn't the evacuations be financed by those who are being evacuated?
Am I missing something?
I agree. I'm not sure that the state even has an obligation to retrieve civilian individuals. It seems to me that most of these individuals work for corporations that will, or should, foot the bill anyway. If you weren't sent there by the state, I don't see why they are required to bail you out of trouble.
We give Israel close to $3 billion of U.S. taxpayer dollars in federal aid each year, mostly for military aid. Israel bombs the runways at Beirut's airport, making flight travel out of the country impossible. But Americans stuck there have to pay our U.S. military to help them get out of the country?
Unfortunately, the $3 Billion given to Israel is an "apples to oranges" comparison. As noted above, the State Department warned against travel to Lebanon. I, at the age of 45, cannot recall a time when Lebanon has been politically stable.
The other anon users are right. People need to take responsibility for their actions; especially when forewarned.
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