For the Record

Evacuating Americans from Lebanon. The "firestorm" over Americans having to pay for their evacuations is no surprise, and it shouldn't be to any American traveling into hot spots or zones. This has been State Department policy for at least the last 40 years.

From personal experience, when traveling to a volatile area the State Department rule is if you run into trouble "you're on your own" and if they assist in getting you out – you reimburse them. Nothing new or unsual here.

For the last few years the general warning for Lebanon has been "The U.S. Government considers the potential threat to U.S. Government personnel assigned to Beirut sufficiently serious to require them to live and work under a strict security regime. This limits the movement of U.S. Embassy officials in certain areas of the country. This factor, plus limited staffing, prevents the Embassy from performing full consular functions and may hinder timely assistance to Americans in Lebanon. American air carriers are prohibited from using Beirut International Airport (BIA) due to continuing concern about airport and aircraft security arrangements. For similar reasons, the Lebanese carrier Middle East Airlines (MEA) is not permitted to operate service into the United States. U.S. citizens who travel to Lebanon despite this Warning should exercise heightened caution when traveling …"

Citizens stranded in Lebanon, however, will likely receive better response and treatment than Katrina victims, and the "firestorm" will last about as long.