Our government is charging Americans for their transport out of Lebanon.

[charlyvi]

CNN) -- The following is the text of a message sent out Saturday to U.S. citizens registered with the U.S. State Department as traveling to or present in Lebanon.The Department of State continues to work with the Department of Defense on a plan to help American citizens depart Lebanon.

As of the morning of July 15, we are looking at how we might transport Americans to Cyprus. Once in Cyprus, Americans can then board commercial aircraft for onward travel. Commercial airlines provide the safest and most efficient repatriation options to final destinations.

The Department of State reminds American citizens that the U.S. government does not provide no-cost transportation but does have the authority to provide repatriation loans to those in financial need. For the portion of your trip directly handled by the U.S. Government we will ask you to sign a promissory note and we will bill you at a later date.

In a subsequent message, when we have specific details about the transportation arrangements, we will inform you about the costs you will incur. We will also work with commercial aircraft to ensure that they have adequate flights to help you depart Cyprus and connect to your final destination.


http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/07/15/lebanon.advisory/index.html


Am I the only one who thinks something is wrong with this? Huh?

[AnOhioan]

1. In RepubliCon land it is not only right, but "damn right". n/t

[patdem]

2. "Please contact Brownie..er uh, his replacement at FEMA"

make sure to dot all t's and cross all i's...or we will throw out every application...

[Boomer]

3. Un*furking*believable

Our tax dollars at work... somewhere else, like Iraq.

[Solly Mack]

4. Prior to outrage changing the rules, the govt. charged soldiers

to fly home on leave from Iraq.

My husband had to pay and he was not reimbursed when they decided to reimburse some of the money to soldiers. The govt. used a cut-off day for repayments and we didn't make the cut-off date.

So that the government would charge it's own citizens to rescue them from a war zone isn't surprising at all.

[charlyvi]

7. OMG!

So much for helping the soldier! I also read where they charged soldiers for their meals at Walter Reed, until a Congressman, I forget who, stopped the practice.

[MADem]

8. No, they charged them from the POD to the leave location, not all the

way from Iraq. The POD is the designated military point of disembarkation in CONUS. The ride TO the POD was free.

That's always been the way they did it in the past, but back in the day, overseas duty was a plum assignment. It isn't anymore. That's why they changed the regs. When we go back to a peacetime rotation, they'll switch it back again, mark my words.

[Solly Mack]

11. He still paid for his leave home..which is my only point

Now the military pays the fare.


And prior to now, the POD was Baltimore and Atlanta. We didn't live anywhere near either one of those places.

Now they've added Dallas and one more that I can't recall.

[MADem]

13. Yeah, but not the whole way...there was a lot of misunderstanding over

this matter. It WAS SOP for the person to pay their own freight when going on leave in the US, from a US installation, thus, it was SOP for a person to pay their own freight to go on leave once they hit US soil from an overseas assignment.

The big difference here was that these guys weren't doing a cushy rotation in Germany, buying cuckoo clocks and sucking down Bavarian brewskis, they were getting their asses shot at, and for that reason, and that reason only, the rules were changed for people coming out of a combat zone.

[Solly Mack]

15. My cousin didn't pay to take leave during Vietnam

He flew to Korea then on to the states and then on to his final destination...no charge. I remember that because he got injured badly once he got back to Vietnam. That was between tours and may have had something to do with it.

Things in the military change at the drop of a hat. Living the life, I kinda know that intimately.

[MADem]

20. MAC flights--back then, you could get them to damn near anywhere

I MACC'd my way from Asia to California to Alaska to New England, way back when. Free ride the whole way, though I had to take charge of a pallet of classified gear on one leg of the trip (they can grab you and make you do crap when you are flying SPACE A). I reversed the trip a few weeks later.

With the drawdown, there are fewer Space A opportunities...but it still is a good deal if you are EXTREMELY flexible in your travel plans.

[Solly Mack]

23. Most likely. Which means they could have been offering up MAC flights

to those coming home on leave from Iraq for the full trip...they could have...and chose not to until forced.. the government can commandeer commericial airplanes...not saying the airlines wouldn't balk...but it is within the power of the government.

The cost hit a lot of soldiers hard. Some had big families back home they're supporting and that 250-450 dollars was a big deal.

Space A flies out of Baltimore and Atlanta still..I know as I've flown from both places on MAC flights.


SPACE A was moved to Ramstein only here since Rhein Main closed and though destination flights are limited in CONUS and elsewhere (usual MAC PODS), it is still a very cheap way to travel.

We're doing that cush assignment now...drinking bayern beers and buying clocks. :)

[MADem]

27. Not so much, now....few MAC shots now, because of BRAC, you see

Base closure ELIMINATED so many of those MAC flights, because it eliminated so many of the BASES where they'd hopscotch those aircraft. The military does a LOAD of contracting now where they used to do it themselves, both for personnel flights and cargo. Getting to the main bases in Europe and forward (Germany, Italy, Spain, MildenhallUK, Bahrain, Okinawa, Yokota, etc.) is still quite do-able, but if you are a kid who wants to go to Indiana, or Kentucky, it used to be you could actually hop your way home....you can't do that anymore.

Now, you can hitch on military cargo (classified gear, often) and logistics flights, mostly, and only to the major installations. The military passenger aircraft is a rarity, except for small planes (Lears and Beechcraft to ferry around the brass, mostly).

What the government does is buy blocks of open tickets on American, Delta, United, and so on, and they get those seats at the "government rate" (way higher than EXPEDIA) but they are guaranteed space-positive seats. That is what they use, mostly, to get kids home once they hit a CONUS POD. It actually works out cheaper than MAC, because you don't have the kid sitting in limbo (and getting paid) waiting for the flight, and there's none of the expense associated with running your own military "airline" -- the plane, the pilots, the aircrew, the fuel, etc. Way easier just to contract it out, even if you are paying a higher price per seat.

The kids coming out of Iraq to PODs are mostly coming on chartered flights. These are passenger planes with contract, civilian crews that are accustomed to spiraling down into Baghdad International (I have an acquaintance who does this for a living). The odd kid might come out via Germany or Italy on a medical or theater log flight, too--that would probably be an "emergency leave" where time is of the essence.

[rug]

5. I wonder what they're charging for body bags.

[MADem]

9. About twenty seven to thirty eight bucks, depending on how big your order

is.....

[MADem]

6. Nope, par for the course. If you are working for a multinational, they

pick up the bill. If you are on vacation, they'll charge you the coach government fare, even if your ass is wedged in a jump seat with two hundred and then some of your newest, closest friends.

[NNN0LHI]

10. We need to realize that the majority of these people are not indigent

One can't hitchhike to Beirut. I don't think this pay as you go deal is new? I don't see anything wrong with this policy. I didn't click on the link to see if it was a new policy because my browser crashes on CNN pages. I need a new computer.

Don

[Donkeykick]

12. Heck No!

People like that--the ones that work for Haliburton and such--can get out of their own predicaments; however, those that work in embassies and such shouldn't be charged!

[MADem]

18. The ones working for the government are not charged

And the ones working for Halliburton, or similar companies, if there are any over there, will have their company pick up the tab. They won't be a dime out of pocket.

The ones who will be billed are Edna and Bob Kerfluffle from Podunk, IA, who are passing through Damascus on a package tour...or Susie Schmuck, doing a summer semester at AU. Or Habib Habbibi, visiting his his great aunt for the summer.

[charlyvi]

22. i think it's awful.

This is a war zone and these people are in danger. It's as shameful as charging people to evacuate them during Katrina......oh, wait a minute. Our government didn't lift a finger to evacuate our people from Katrina. Never mind.

[MADem]

17. Noncombatant evacuation operations are VOLUNTARY

Unless you are accompanying the Forces. Then, they can make you go, because you are there under military travel orders. And if you ARE accompanying the forces, the government pays.

No, you are right, this is NOT new.

These people do NOT HAVE TO LEAVE. I can tell ya, many will not. Especially if they are visiting grandma and grampa and are worried about them. The ones that will leave are the "real" tourists with no cultural connection to the country, the students at AU, and the people who don't have strong ties and a family homestead to ride this mess out at.

[Gormy Cuss]

33. Here's where I have the problem.

Transporting citizens out of the immediate war zone to say Cyprus is disaster relief. Beyond Cyprus it's fine with me that they're all responsible for the trip home.

It's not a new policy, just a stingy policy.

[BlueCollar]

14. maybe Southwest

should offer low-cost flights to Love Field....

:nopity:

[RB TexLa]

25. No, Fort Worth would not stand for anyone being evacuated from a

state that doesn't border Texas to Love Field.

[ixion]

16. yes, only the WH, Congress and SCOTUS get free transportation

on our dime. :grr:

[Poll_Blind]

19. Lemme get this right: We give Israel billions to buy bombs then CHARGE...

...U.S. citizens to evacuate them when the Israelis go dropping the same bombs on them?

:rofl: :crazy:

Surreal. Truly.

PB

[charlyvi]

21. Interesting way of looking at it. n/t

[EFerrari]

34. Exactly. What not just let them take a tax deduction?

:wtf:

[RB TexLa]

24. And the airlines would let them ride for free?

:shrug:

[charlyvi]

26. No.

But American citizens don't pay taxes to airlines; nor do airlines have a responsibility to protect and defend the citizenry. Airlines are private industry, in business for a profit. The US government is not, at least not yet.

[RB TexLa]

28. So the post office should let you ship anything you want for free?

You should not have to pay to ride a city bus, subway or ferry?

I don't think there is any responsibility of a government to protect it's citizenry in a foreign country, unless they are working for or contracted with the government. It's a nice thing for a government to do but hardly a responsibility.

[charlyvi]

29. Mailing a letter is not an emergency.

Riding a bus, subway or ferry is not an emergency. Leaving a country in peacetime is not an emergency. This is an emergency; I do think a government has a responsibility to get it's citizens out of a war zone, but I'm funny that way. Then again, this government can't even keep it's citizens out of harm's way in country (Katrina), so I'm probably expecting way too much.

[MADem]

31. Well, they ARE doing that, but here's the bottom line

Those folks, if they are US citizens on a tourist jaunt, would be coming home anyway. And unless they are swimming, they will have to pay to get home.

The USG charges the coach "government rate" for transport. If the people are herded into charter aircraft, that's what they will be expected to pay. It's not usurious by any stretch.

If, OTOH, they are ferried to Cyprus and dumped at the airport to make their own arrangements, they'll do their own booking and get the best deal they can manage on their own. USG will not charge them for the boat ride if it is on a USN/USNS vessel.

[Humor_In_Cuneiform]

30. No biggie. Probably send them on the H'Burton Express at a mere

3000% markup on actual cost.

Sign your life away if you want to be rescued by Helliburton, or just stay in the war zone.

[donsu]

32. but when some americans get killed the neo cons will say 'see, it's

the fault of Iran supporting Hizbollah'

the americans in Lebanon are neo con pawns

[spinbaby]

35. Unbelievable

K&R